


Supercorp Coffee Table Collection

by BigMammaLlama5



Series: Lounge Books [1]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Drabble Collection, F/F, Fluff, Smut, a variety of topics, eventually, i'll tag anything of issue per each prompt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-26
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2020-09-26 22:24:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 39
Words: 58,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20397121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BigMammaLlama5/pseuds/BigMammaLlama5
Summary: A collection of the short drabbles I originally post in tumblr asks. Cleaned up and shortly expanded for AO3. Rarely angsty. Will update as chosen asks are answered. Length of updates will be short!





	1. Gal Pal'd

**Author's Note:**

> Gentle reminder that I am NOT actively taking prompts. I am just choosing to answer some of my tumblr asks if I feel inspired! Thank you for reading. <3
> 
> Ask: Lena shows up at a rich person party wearing a tasteful el marayah brooch and the paps go wild

Kara knew before even checking her phone that the tabloids would be filled with every ridiculous headline that she could conceivably think of.

_ LUTHOR WEARING SUPER SAYING-WHAT COULD THIS MEAN FOR THE WORLD? _

_ LUTHOR AND A SUPOR. DOES THIS SPELL DOOM? IS IT A WARNING? OR IS IT A WEIRD ALIEN FLIRTING RITUAL? _

_ LUTHOR CHEATING? SUPER SYMBOL SPOTTED ON LAPEL. _

_ SUPER INFLUENCE OVER A LUTHOR? _

_ LENA LUTHOR AND SUPERGIRL IN BED TOGETHER? _

_ LUTHOR SHOWING SUPPORT FOR BEST MATE SUPERGIRL. _

_ SUPER AND A LUTHOR, THE NEWEST BEZZIE MATES. _

And other such distasteful forms of idiotic gal pal-ing and tired needless takes on the Super verses Luthor age old argument. It happened every time Lena wore the crest of her house and they were both beyond tired of it. Maybe eventually the speculations would die down and they could go twelve hours without someone jumping down their throats.

Kara sighed and put her phone face down on the bed side table. She’d sit with Lena and her personal lawyer during damage control over coffee if she needed to. Not that there was much damage to control, but the headlines did seem a little nastier than usual as the anniversary of Lex’s fall drew closer. Kara rolled over and pressed into Lena’s back, winding an arm around her front and pressing her nose into the nape of her neck.

“I think they forgot we’re dating.  _ Again _ .”

Lena snorted sleepily and wiggled closer into the warm curl of her body, her arm curling loosely around Kara’s.

“Whatever.”


	2. Gala Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: There’s lots of fics where Lena invites Kara to a social event as her +1 but imagine if she invited supergirl instead? They walk into the room arm-in-arm and everyone starts doing the usual ‘a Super and a Luthor???? pearl-clutching

Supergirl is the perfect gentlewoman.

Polite, poised, and engaging.

A vision with curling golden locks, tanned freckled skin, a bright warm smile, and a strong sleek frame swathed in royal navy and rich red. She wasn’t wearing her traditional tactical suit that evening, but instead a more regal outfit. Her deep navy bodysuit was still present, but draped fabric of rich reds and golds accentuated the broadness of her shoulders and the flare of her hips. She was truly as handsome as her cousin.

Supergirl by Lena Luthor’s side more often than not, sharing a private smile with a hand on the small of her back with the barest touch. It makes the Luthor woman soften ever time. The room is split between delighted confusion and fuming anger.

_ How dare a Luthor canoodle with a Super? _

_ Isn’t it wonderful how well they get along together? _

Never swayed by the poisoning ire of Lex’s supporters, and blushing prettily when complimented, Supergirl takes a page from Lena Luthor’s book and appears nearly unflappable. Never the less, each side is truly alarmed at the sheer number of potstickers she consumes.

The only person unfazed is Lena Luthor, who simply hands her napkins.


	3. 3AM Pancakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Thinking about people seeing Lena and Supergirl together in the most mundane situations is fun. You go to your favourite late-night diner at like 3 in the morning and just see supergirl hunched over a laptop typing furiously and Lena Luthor disassembling some advanced tech and they’re both surrounded by a dozen empty coffee cups

She was more concerned about her 3 AM pancakes in front of her than the couple crammed in the booth in the corner. Her entire body ached from a too-long library stay but pancakes  _ were a must _ . She had four days to finish preparing her term paper and  _ dammit _ she was going to do it.

It wasn’t until she asked for her bill that she gave them a second look, wondering why the waitress had told her it had been taken care of with a nod of her head to the far booth. No one had ever covered her bill before like this. Was this a  _ pay it forward _ kind of thing? She didn’t think she had enough money in her bank account to risk that.

She almost didn’t recognize the infamous Lena Luthor in jeans and a sweater that looked well loved. And she nearly had to pick her jaw up off the table when she realized the other woman was  _ Supergirl _ . A ratty National City hoodie was engulfing her and the hood was up over her head, but she knew those red boots anywhere… and the cape goofily trailing out the bottom hem was a dead giveaway. The table was filled with laptops and weird pieces of technology and empty dishes. She had heard rumors of them doing this. Spending time together like friends later at night. It was hilariously unreasonable to even try to believe those murmurs, yet here they were in flesh and blood. Working and wolfing down diner style pancakes.

Her heart nearly flopped out onto the table when when Supergirl glanced over, gave her a wink with a subtle finger to her lips in a  _ hush _ motion, and then returned to her speedy typing. She almost missed Lena Luthor’s quirk of a smile at Supergirl’s antics, distracted by the near-inhuman speed her hands were moving across the keyboard. Feeling more confused than anything, she left a generous tip, called a soft  _ Thank You _ (which was received with a short wave), and wandered back out into the night.

It was weirdly comforting that even two of the busiest women in the world needed 3 AM pancakes too.

-

The next morning she wondered if it had been a library induced fever dream. She should have taken a picture, but she would never doubt those rumors again.


	4. The Chantels

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: To add to this series you have going, Supergirl and Lena doing a duet at a karaoke bar
> 
> -
> 
> I couldn’t really picture Lena singing, so how about this instead?

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Because if you don’t want me to that’s totally fine.”

“Supergirl.”

“And I don’t want to embarrass you or anything-“

Lena covered Kara’s hand with her own and leaned in close, her brow arching slowly in a demand for attention. Kara’s mouth closed with a click of her teeth and a blush rose to her cheeks. Lena stared her down for a moment longer, a ghost of a crooked grin tugging at the corner of her mouth when blue eyes dropped to her lips.

“ _ Sing me a song, Kara _ .”

Supergirl cleared her throat at her murmured request and rose from her seat, flustered with her face a little more pink than before. Lena leaned back and hid her please smile behind her glass.

“Okay, well, uh. Okay.”

Supergirl practically tripped her way across the establishment and waited in line for her name to be called.

“And now, coming to the stage is Supergirl! What a treat! Let’s give her a warm welcome-“

The DJ was drowned out by a roar of applause and wolf whistles as Kara took a floating hop up onto the stage. She greeted the house band warmly and took the microphone from the DJ with good humor. Supergirl slid onto the stool under the golden spotlights with a grin to the crowd and rearranged her cape in her lap.

“I was planning to sing  _ Hit Me Baby One More Time _ , but I don’t think you’re ready for that.”

The crowd laughed. The low light of cell phones being held up to record her dotted the tables.

“Instead, I’m going to sing something a little older. When I was growing up, my adoptive mother used to listen to the oldies on the radio while she cleaned.”

Supergirl paused and glanced out into the crowd to Lena. Her face softened and her eyes dropped shyly to her lap for a moment. A private smile brightened her, and she straightened back up with a deep breath.

“This is  _ Look in My Eyes _ by The Chantels.”


	5. Evil Boss Cat™

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: After her falling out with Kara, Lena decides to augment her supervillain vibe a bit by getting a sinister-looking cat that sits on her lap and that she can stroke while she monologues (not that she’s actually evil, she just needs to intimate Kara a little). Except the cat loves Kara, and every time she shows up in Lena’s office it jumps into her arms and lets her cuddle as much as she wants

“ _ Stop that, you’re supposed to help me look intimidating. _ ”

Lena hissed out of the corner of her mouth at the cat head butting Kara in the chin and purring like a lawnmower. She crossed her arms and slouched in her chair as Supergirl,  _ Kara _ , leaned her forearms on the edge of her desk. There was still tension and anger between them, mainly from Lena’s side, but it didn’t help that Supergirl,  _ Kara _ , often had to visit on DEO business. It  _ also _ didn’t help that her so called Evil Boss Cat, and currently the newest love in her life, didn’t help her look intimidating  _ at all _ .

Maybe she wanted to intimidate Supergirl.  _ Kara _ .

Maybe she wanted to show her  _ harmlessly _ that she was  _ very mad _ and even if she would never actually  _ do _ anything to her, she wanted to try to give the impression that she  _ could. _ Which was  _ also _ a lie.

Honestly she was only playing up the Evil Boss Thing because Captain Picard was a lovely emotional support animal and she got to take him everywhere. Supergirl,  _ Kara _ , didn’t need to know that. Well. She would tell her anyways, but she didn’t need to know that  _ right now _ .

Kara tries so hard not to smile and buries her face into Captain Picard’s endless fluff, because even though she  _ knows _ she screwed up and the entire situation is a hot mess and Lena is  _ extremely _ upset with her... she also knows that it won’t last. She just needs to give Lena the time she needs. And cuddling with her Evil Boss Cat™ should help the waiting feel a little less awful.

Kara glanced up at Lena and caught her quickly looking away. But she had seen the softness in her face and Kara selfishly hoped that she wouldn’t have to wait much longer. The cat bopped his forehead on her chin again with a quiet  _ mrrp _ ?

“Oof, yes, Captain. All business from here on out.”


	6. Ever After AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Supercorp 'Ever After' AU just for that scene when the bandits tell Danielle she can leave with everything she can carry, but it's Lena carrying Kara
> 
> -
> 
> Featuring Sam as the bandit leader!

“Let her go! Your quarrel is with me.”

A tense silence fell across the glen. The steel was cool against Lena’s throat and the man’s arms about her shoulders were uncomfortably tight. He smelled like stale beer and sweat. The grungy woman with long, dark unkempt hair glanced to Princess Kara of the House of Danvers, and then back to Lena. She nodded gruffly to her cohort.

“Release her.”

Lena pushed the man’s arm away with a grimace once the tension lessened and she whirled on the spot, giving him a firm shove in the chest. He wrinkled his nose at her but his arm fell limp to his side. Lena spun on her heel again and addressed the bandit woman, injecting as much bravado into her voice as she could manage. She clenched her fists by her side to hide their nervous tremble.

“I  _ insist _ you return my things at once!”

The woman blinked in surprise. Lena barreled forward, biting down on the adrenaline threatening to choke her.

“And since you deprived me of my escort I demand a horse as well.”

Out of the corner of her eye she could see a disheveled and bloody-lipped Princess Kara turn her head to her in disbelief. The bandit woman scoffed and glanced out towards her underlings, her brows raising in an almost impressed reaction. She turned back towards Lena, a snarky grin tugging at her mouth.

“Me lady! You can have anything you can carry.”

Lena paused. This woman was riff raff. Lower than the low, only above the sickest of monsters. Surely there was a catch? She sucked in a deep breath, trying to steel herself for the grim possibility of this brief truce ending messily. She  _ needed _ this to work. She  _ needed _ to get them out of there.

“May I have your word on that, my lady?”

Kara glanced back to the bandit woman. Lena swallowed thickly, ignoring how a bead of sweat tracked down her spine. The woman snorted and jutted her jaw out in mock thought for a moment.

“On my honor as a bandit. Whatever you can carry.”

Lena’s feet were in motion as soon as she had finished speaking. It was now or never and she strode forward with purpose, and then cut towards Kara. The woman’s eyes burned on her and the other bandits murmured amongst themselves as they watched her walk right up to Princess Kara. Kara watched her carefully, still trying to catch her breath as the blood from her split lip dripped onto her chest. Lena paused for just a brief moment, her brow furrowing in a wordless plea for Kara to  _ just play along _ , and grabbed her arm.

She bent, pulled Kara bodily across her shoulders in a way she had seen the men of the field carry bundles of wheat, and straightened up with a quiet groan. She wound her arms around a toned arm and leg and found her balance. Kara was much heavier than she looked, but blessedly the Princess said nothing and let herself be hoisted up. The bandit woman  _ had _ said  _ whatever you can carry _ .

About her the bandits began to laugh, but Lena paid them no mind. She simply turned to the woman, whose eyes were nearly bugging out of her head in disbelief at how Lena had used her words against her, and gave a quick polite curtsey in thanks. She turned quickly, unable to hide the pleased grin in time and began trudging away, feeling Kara begin to laugh as well.

The bandits laughed louder the further she walked and she heard someone call out  _ My lady, can I have a turn next? _ as the bandit woman began to roar with laughter. Still Lena kept going, her own laughter spilling breathlessly from her lips as the bandit woman called to her in an amused and defeated shout.

“Wait! Please,  _ come back _ ! I’ll give you a horse!  _ HA HA HA HA _ -”


	7. Puppies and Love Confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: that fluffy cloud dog but like, kara's newly adopted dog krypto that just kind of falls in love with lena? and lena's like, confused but cannot help but to fall in love with the fluffy cloud just like she fell in love with kara.

Lena buried her hands into the thick fluffy coat of the massive dog sprawled on top of her. His elbow was jammed uncomfortably into her ribs, but she didn’t have the heart to make him move. It’s a crime to make an animal laying on you move anyways. Not to mention his sweet brown eyes were doing that whole soulful  _ I love you _ thing as his head rested on her chest. Lena combed her fingers down the back of his neck again and his eyes slipped closed with a content sigh. She had only just met this new dog a few hours before, but Lena knew that she would love him for a lifetime. A soft sound of amusement came from somewhere around her feet and Lena craned her neck to look around the huge dog as her chin pressed to her chest.

“What?”

Kara shrugged, looking soft and relaxed curled up on the end of the blue loveseat with her head propped up on her hand as her elbow rested on top of the cushion. Her glasses were pushed up onto her head and a warm smile was tugging at the corner of her mouth. Lena watched her for a long moment, admiring how the light from the nearby lamp made Kara’s hair look like spun gold. And the way her best friend was looking at her? It made her chest feel like it was stuffed full of sunlight. Maybe soon she’d work up the courage to tell Kara how she felt. Tell her that she was hopelessly in love with her. It wasn’t a matter of if Kara loved her too, she could tell she could. It was just the right moment. A moment she had been putting off for months.

Maybe  _ now _ was the right moment?

“I’m starting to think you like him more than me.” Kara murmured, her eyes dropping to a very happy Krypto, then back up to her.

“It was always inevitable, wasn’t it?” Lena teased as she continued to massage around his ears. He was so  _ soft _ .

Kara rolled her eyes. “Ousted by my own dog.”

Lena nudged her knee with her foot, her heart leaping into her throat as she leapt blindly. “I do love you, you know.”

Kara melted a little and her eyes scrunched with her grin. “I know. I love you too.”

Lena’s heart sat heavy in her throat. She ran her hands through Krypto’s fur again, glancing nervously at her best friend. “No, I-I mean,  _ I love you _ .”

There was barely a beat, and then Kara’s hand dropped to her ankle and she sank a little further into the couch. She laid her head on her bicep and blushed shyly, exuding nothing but affection in her posture.

“I know. I love you too.” She repeated, much softer than before.

Relief washed through her and Lena felt like she could cry. She swallowed thickly and started carding her fingers through the ruff around Krypto’s shoulders. “Good.”

Kara smiled again, rubbing her hand soothingly across Lena’s shin.

“Good.”

Krypto smacked his lips.

-

  
Later, Krypto decided the cool tile of Kara’s bathroom was more comfortable than sprawling across his new favorite human. Little did he know, he had been replaced by his new favorite Kryptonian. What he  _ did _ know, was that his new favorite human and Kryptonian certainly made weird sounds at each other.


	8. The Little Hours

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Kara and Lena out walking *late* late (like you can see the horizon beginning the lighten late). Maybe it's winter, and they're enjoying each other's company in a world that hasn't woken up yet

The early morning chill burned Lena’s lungs and she hunched her shoulders up around her ears, trying to burrow further into her scarf. Her heels clicked on the pavement, accompanied by the quiet thump of Kara’s boots and the swish of her cape. She shoved her gloved hands deeper into the pockets of her wool coat and pressed in closer to Kara’s side, grateful for the cover of the end of the early hours that hid the way her arm wrapped around her shoulders. Lena wasn’t terribly keen on the tabloids catching a photo of her with Supergirl’s arm about her, especially when she was publicly dating Senior Reporter Kara Danvers. That was a mess they had been actively avoiding for the past couple months.

This quiet moment was theirs. There were no paparazzi. No work emergencies. No calls from the DEO. No entitled business investors vying for her time. No overly excited fans trying to get the coolest selfies with Supergirl. It was just the two of them, Kara and Lena, walking along the waterfront while the world slept. They rarely got moments like this outside of their apartments, moments to be a faceless couple in public. Lena relished them greedily.

“The sun will be up soon.”

Lena looked up and out over the steely black waters of the bay at Kara’s comment. It was still too early for the gulls to be crying, and the water lapped at the concrete storm wall. A thin line of faint lavender traced the horizon. They paused for a few moments and watched the sky begin to lighten from inky black to the rich pastels of dawn. Lena sighed tiredly and let her head rest on Kara’s shoulder. They didn’t have a lot of time left. Already the early morning joggers were starting to appear down the waterfront. She turned quickly and pulled Kara in by the belt, pressing a kiss to the corner of her mouth.

“I’ll see you later?”

Kara glanced around and leaned in to steal a kiss that sent Lena reeling for the stars. She was warmth, spice, and metallic ozone and Lena wanted nothing more but to just stand there and kiss her even though her toes and the tips of her ears were going numb in the cold. Kara pressed a few more quick pecks to her mouth and the tip of her nose before stepping away.

“Do you want a lift home?”

Lena blinked back into focus as a blush rose to color her cheeks and pulled her coat close, already missing Kara’s warmth. “No, I’ll call a car.”

“Let me wait with you.”

Lena nodded, not trusting herself to speak in case she asked Kara to kiss her again. She texted her driver and they began walking back to the fire lane as the sky bled pink and gold. A few moments later the black town car pulled up to the curb Lena leaned in close-but not too close.

“Can you come to lunch?”

Kara grinned and let her hand brush against Lena’s hip for a heartbeat. “I’ll be there.”

Kara reached around Lena and popped the door open for her with a sly wink and helped her into the car with a quiet  _ Have a good day, Miss Luthor _ . Lena watched her shoot into the dawn sky from the safety of her cozy ride, her heart careening up into the stratosphere with her.


	9. My WIFE

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: lena on an analgesic is so gone that she think she's meeting kara for the first time and tries really hard to hit on her

A thick, deep throated cackle burbled out of Lena’s mouth as someone pressed on her torso. She felt fuzzy and numb and pleasantly floaty. It definitely beat the searing pain that had been in her side. Her hands wove in the air in an awkward flail as her world smeared across her vision and someone gently guided her hands back to the DEO infirmary bed. There was a a murmur of voices and she was able to pick out a few phrases through muffled sound.

_ Easy, Lena. Don’t pull out your IV. _

_ What did you GIVE her? _

_ -strong reaction to the alien toxin in her body. It was topical- _

_ -superficial wound- _

_ -saline flush be helpful? _

Lena tried to say something but all she managed to do was make some kind of garbled noise and laugh again as she spat on her own face. A heavy warm hand pressed into her shoulder, the one on the opposite side of her body from where someone was poking and prodding at her side. She pulled her eyes up to the person leaning over her and nearly gasped. Even with her blurry vision, the beautiful woman with messy golden curls and worried bright blue eyes took her breath away.

“Hey, Lena. How are you feeling?”

Lena just gawped. And then-

“Wha’s happenin’, hot stuff?”

There was a jumble of amused voices around her and the woman blushed. She mumbled something and briefly turned away for a moment. Lena decided she was very pretty and had a nice neck. And jaw. And nose. The woman turned back to her and Lena tried to wink. If winking could be closing both of your eyes for a solid ten seconds then she had this in the bag. When she was finished  _ winking _ she tried speaking again.

“‘S place like you doin’ n’ girl like this?”

“Lena, I-“

The woman looked almost embarrassed. For her. Whatever. Shoot your shot, right?

“You’rev. Pretty.”

“Thank you.”

Now she was looking at her like… like she liked her! It was working.

“Ar’you seein’ ‘nyone?”

The woman groaned and leaned up.  _ She doesn’t remember me _ . There were more consoling sounds of amusement and the woman leaned back down with a worried and infinitely patient expression.

“We’re married.”

Lena blinked for just three seconds this time.

“We’re  ** _married_ ** ?!”

Her voice came out louder than she realized and she pressed her head into the pillow with a sorry, sorry. Someone else reassuringly patted her knee. Lena couldn’t stop staring at this woman. Her wife. She was in awe.

“I married you?  _ How did I do that _ ?”

“I ask myself that every day.”

Lena couldn’t stop staring at her.

“My  _ wife _ .”

She started to cry.

-

The next morning after Kara had held her and comforted her to sleep, Lena woke up horrendously groggy from the weird reaction she had suffered from the alien toxin and the simple painkiller she had been given. Kara was on one side of her bed with a small cup of coffee for her, and Nia on the other with a shit eating grin and a video on her phone that Lena just _knew_ had to be blackmail.

She wasn't wrong.


	10. Punk'd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: i don't want all this angst, i want Lena to go to Alex and be like i know Kara is Supergirl now help me prank her and then they have a prank war until one day Kara is like HOLD UP

The agents at the DEO parted before a slimed Supergirl like the Red Sea being chased by an angry suburban mom taking advantage of her privilege. It wasn’t just slime. It was  _ nuclear green _ slime. Dunked in a tub of the famous Nickelodeon TV Show kind of nuclear green slime. Unfortunately it tasted  _ terrible _ , and not at all like the aforementioned slime made of pudding and applesauce. To add insult to injury, she had somehow been launched into a ball pit filled with vibrant pool floats.

There was still one float around her waist. I large inner tube designed to look like a giant donut with pink icing and sprinkles. Scrawled in large purple letters across it was a single word.

** _Punk’d_ **

In  _ Lena’s _ handwriting.

Lena  _ knew _ . She  _ knew _ Kara was  _ Supergirl _ . After weeks of a weird prank war with who she  _ thought _ was Alex... everything finally fell into place. There was no way her sister wasn’t involved. Only so many people had access to her DEO locker. Her loafers  _ still _ smelled like peanut butter.

But it was  _ Lena _ who had been pulling pranks on Supergirl to get back at her for not telling her who she really was. Granted, this was a much nicer outcome than she had feared. But  _ green slime? _ !

“ _ ALEX _ .”

Kara squelched into the HUB, face burning red hot and feeling uncomfortably sticky. She shivered as a glop of slime somehow managed to slide down her spine under her suit. She whirled in a circle, agents ducking behind monitors as a spiral of slime slung off of her.

“ _ ALEX DANVERS YOU BETTER SHOW YOUR FACE _ .”

There was a patter of footsteps and Kara turned in time to see not only Alex, but Winn and Querl Dox high tailing it out of the HUB. Their laughter echoed in the hallway beyond and Kara decided she would deal with them later. She shoved the pool float off her hips with an undignified  _ squeak _ and kicked it away. Right now there was someone  _ else _ who she needed to speak to.

-

She landed on the balcony to Lena’s L-Corp office with a  _ squelch _ , her hair limp and sticky and stiff around her shoulders. As she had flown closer, the reality of what had happened, what was  _ about _ to happen slammed into her chest so hard she nearly dropped out of the sky. By the time she had touched down the frustration was a low simmer in her belly, engulfed by nearly pure panic. She had been meaning to tell Lena-and had literally planned to that weekend. She had just been so busy, and then with Lillian somehow managing to antagonize her from her high security prison, and then the  _ pranks _ ... It had been a lot to deal with. Kara wondered if the vat of slime was still available for her to hide in.

She balked again when she looked up and noticed Lena watching her through the glass. She had an insufferably smug expression plastered across her face and Kara was torn between being intimidated or... she swallowed down the annoying surge of heat. Now was  _ not _ the time to be in love with Lena Luthor.

Kara steeled herself and barged in through the glass door, pulling her frustration up around her shoulders like armor. Lena remained reclined in her chair, arms and legs crossed in a vision of unflappable authority. Kara ground to a stop about three feet in front of her and just stared. The quiet  _ plip plip plip _ of residual slime dripping off of her and onto the floor was deafening. When it seemed that Lena wasn’t going to speak, Kara gestured broadly to herself.

“ _ Really _ ? Are you  _ three _ ?”

A satisfied smirk curled at red painted lips. “I’m glad I got it on video.”

Kara rolled her eyes, feeling infinitely annoyed. “Yeah, well, I was going to tell you.”

“Oh really? When?”

“This weekend.”

“Forgive me for remaining skeptical, Kara.”

Lena’s words dripped with tired ire. But she didn’t seem angry. Just frustrated. Like Kara.

“I know I screwed up, okay? I screwed up  _ big time _ . I don’t want to lose you, and if it takes the rest of my life to make it up to you  _ I’ll do it _ .”

“That depends.” Lena stood from her chair and leaned her hip onto her desk.

“On  _ what _ ?” Kara huffed in exasperation.

Lena arched a perfect brow. “On if you have any other secrets to tell me.”

Again, the loudest sound in the room was the green slime dripping off of Kara’s cape and onto the floor. Her heart leapt into her throat and Kara was crossing the distance between them before she realized what she was really doing, and blocked in a surprised Lena against her desk. She pressed her hands flat to the glossy white surface on either side of her and lurched to a stop, the tip of her nose just a scant inch from Lena’s. Slender hands curled around her biceps as Lena steadied herself, her eyes wide as Kara leaned in close.

“I have one more.”

She kissed her. Carefully, without trying to press her full body into her. Lena may have no qualms about sliming her high tech super suit, but if she wanted to get out of this encounter further unscathed she would try to spare her very expensive designer clothes. But  _ Rao _ , she was  _ so _ soft. And smelled so  _ good _ . And for a split second as Lena froze against her, Kara thought she may have actually screwed everything up. But then Lena was wrapping her arms around her shoulders and pulling her in, kissing her back so fiercely Kara thought her knees would buckle.

“I like this secret.” Lena murmured and kissed her again.

Kara decided she was done with secrets between her and Lena.


	11. Laundromat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Alternate first meeting AU: Lena goes to the late night laundromat and is greeted by the sight of supergirl (sans cape) reading a book & with a pair of glasses perched on her nose. The red of her swirling cape is visible through the glass of the washing machine. Also I guess an AU where Lena would need to go to a laundromat

Let the record show that Lena Luthor had no business being in a local laundromat. In fact she could buy this laundromat. She could buy all of the laundromats in National City and run a laundromat  _ empire _ . Hell, she could run a laundromat  _ conglomerate _ in the pacific northwest with pocket change. She would be lying if she said she hadn’t considered it.

But, this was something that Lena liked to do. She liked to dress down and be invisible and get a feel for the neighborhood. Who were the people that lived here? What were their lives like? How many loads of laundry could she sneakily pay for before people got suspicious that their fees had already been taken care of? It wasn’t like  _ she _ needed the money. It was a past time from college. She would pretend to go wash a load of laundry if only to feel like an actual member of society and to step out of the gilded bubble she had been raised in. That, of course, had become extremely difficult to do after Lex’s fall from grace. She had decided to take a chance in National City. Not even the press knew she had already relocated, though the announcement was set for tomorrow. All the press knew was that the National City branch of LexCorp was in the middle of rebranding and preparing to rehouse the Corporation’s headquarters.

Lena shouldered the door open, the little bell jingling as she hauled in her small load of borrowed towels. Towels that  _ were _ actually hers, and were covered in grease from her lab. She scrunched up her nose to readjust her glasses and peered around the narrow building. There were a few customers despite the clock creeping on eleven. The grizzled man at the counter looked up from his newspaper crossword and gave her a once over from down the aisle, and went back to his game seemingly unimpressed and unworried. Good. She wandered down the adjacent aisle for an open machine and drew up short.

Supergirl?

No that couldn’t be right.

_ Supergirl _ ??

Lena blinked. About halfway down the aisle was a lithe woman clad in tech-y blue spandex, her deep red boots crossed out in front of her a pop of color against the scuffed linoleum. She was slouching low, her rear just barely on the seat. A well loved book was held gently in her hands and a trendy pair of tortoise shell glasses were perched low on the tip of her nose. Lena jumped when the Super looked up, a pleasant grin lighting her face.

“Hi!”

Lena closed her mouth with a click and blushed. She had only seen official press photos and grainy blurred action shots of her, but never like this. She was  _ unfairly _ pretty.

“You must be new in town. Don’t worry, I keep to myself. Or if you’d like some tips on around town I’d be happy to help.”

Lena could only nod mutely, now slightly terrified that she would recognize her… but all the same she felt inexplicably drawn to Supergirl. Maybe because it was late at night and she was alone? Yeah, let’s go with that.

“Hi! Hi. I am. New here. I. Um.” She stumbled over her words, feeling too flustered, and flapped her hand at her bag. “Laundry?”

Supergirl smiled at her again and pointed to the line of washers across from her. “Pick a machine.”

Lena blushed again and shuffled down the aisle, picking an open machine about three down from Supergirl’s. She could see the soapy swirl of red in the machine across from the Super and realized she wasn’t wearing her cape. Lena busied herself with her towels and swiped her card through the payment interface. It only took her a moment to load in the soap and soiled garments, and then she found herself settled into a seat, three down from Supergirl. She didn’t know what possessed her to speak up, but she did, losing all composure she normally held. And well. She couldn’t very well  _ act _ like  _ Lena Luthor _ in the middle of a laundromat at eleven at night in a strange new city now, could she?

“So, um. Slow night?” She pointed at the swirl of red.

Supergirl glanced up from her book and smiled with a nod. “The organization I work with let me have a window of time. Had a, uh, messy run in earlier this evening.”

“Oh. That was nice of them.” Lena replied, filing that information away.

They sat in silence for a long moment, but Supergirl didn’t return to her book. Lena took it as an invitation.

“I’m Lena, by the way.”

Supergirl smiled and held out her hand to shake. Lena leaned over and took it, marveling at the steady warmth and hidden strength in her hand.

“Supergirl. Welcome to National City, Lena.”


	12. Hey, Batter!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Lena gets into the whole company sports thing and starts a Catco softball league. Kara is of course the star player but can’t for the life of her figure out why she’s the only player whose uniform is sleeveless

Lena knew that Kara was smarter than she looked.  _ Unbelievably _ smart. But sometimes… she had her moments. Everyone had their moments. But maybe Lena had sent her a uniform order sheet that had the option for a sleeveless jersey.  _ Maybe _ that had been the only order form with a sleeveless option on it.

_ Okay _ , maybe she resent the entire form with a sleeveless option to the employees interested in playing because the look Jess had given her made her want to hide under her desk. 

But for some reason, Kara was still the only other person to select a sleeveless jersey and for that, Lena still got what she wanted. And what she wanted was to be able to safely ogle Kara’s tanned and toned arms in the warm afternoon sun as she took a few practice swings with her bat behind the safety of her large sunglasses. She may have day dreamed a little bit about how strong they looked, and how it felt to be held by them. She also may have let her mind wander a bit further than appropriately necessary for the community softball game, thinking of different more risqué ways those arms could hold her in the privacy of her apartment.

A singing metallic  _ thwack _ jerked her from the heady confines of her fantasy as Kara’s bat made contact. The neon yellow ball zipped out to a hole between outfielders in a sailing line drive and the dugout on the right went wild. Lena rose to her feet with the crowd, clapping enthusiastically. A hand appeared in her peripheral and she offered Alex Danvers a high five. The woman whistled loudly as Kara drew up on second base. She turned back towards the dugout and pumped her arm excitedly, her smile visible from the field. She settled and stepped out towards third base, a foot still on the bag as the ball made it back to the opposing pitcher.

The crowd sat back down, buzzing with energy. Alex said something about Kara’s good at-bat, and she made a noise of agreement but she was again distracted by the profile her arms made as she propped her hands on her knees.

It was going to be a long game.


	13. Ache

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> murdershegoat on tumblr (lhknox here on ao3) received this ask and was kind enough to let me write something for it. So this chapter is for her!
> 
> Lena and Kara are still on the outs, but after a particularly gruelling battle in which Lena had to become involved they’re both so exhausted that they quietly pull each other into a corner of the DEO and softly make out. It isn’t forgiveness, not yet, just the unspoken knowledge that they’ll always have a home in each other’s arms

Lena slouched a little further in her seat. The heavy pull of exhaustion in her bones made her want to do nothing more than to go home and sleep. There was a spot on the left side of her ribs that she  _ knew _ was already bruising. Director Danvers had told her she was lucky nothing was broken, and then promptly chewed her out until her ears rang. Lena didn’t think she had been that chastised since Lillian had stuck her in that awful Catholic boarding school when she was seven. She reached up and prodded at the thin butterfly bandage above her left brow. Her skin felt sticky and chilled under the form fitting padded jumpsuit and she could still smell the faint electrical burn from her modified EXO-Suit armor.

She hadn’t  _ meant _ to put it on. The EXO-Suit. Hadn’t  _ meant _ to blast out of the DEO main hangar without flight clearance. Hadn’t  _ meant _ to fly through US air space illegally… but Kara had been in trouble. She had been overwhelmed by the alien and it’s weird secreting neurotoxin that was sapping of her strength and focus and the DEO agents couldn’t help her and Lena couldn’t just  _ sit there _ in her Prada behind a screen and watch her get the shit beaten out of her. She wasn’t angry enough with Kara anymore to meanly want that to happen. Each sickening punch she heard through Kara’s comm unit made everyone in the HUB flinch and made Lena feel like she was going to vomit. Each panicked grunt or slurred request for  _ help please help _ made terror drip icy down her spine. They may not be  _ friends _ , but Kara was still  _ Kara _ .

_ Her Kara. _

So she defied orders. Kicked off her new Louboutins and sprinted barefoot through the compound to her corner of the Lab she shared with Querl Dox. She had locked the lab down, quickly changed into the protective jumpsuit and braided her hair back as she rushed through the suit pre-flight checks. She had recklessly ignored a few warnings, hence the burning electrical smell, but the suit had worked well enough. Lena had been able to reach Kara in time, the propulsion rockets whining shrilly with how hard she was pushing them. She vaguely remembered bellowing something unintelligible right before she plowed shoulder first into the alien, the proton beam canon in her right palm humming with a dull  _ thump thump thump  _ as she emptied the charge into the belly of the screaming beast. Each blast made her nerves up to her shoulder tingle and her teeth rattled in her skull.

It had been a blur of too many gangly too-long limbs and thick brackish blood and concrete dust as she grappled with the alien, forcing it back for a few scant heartbeats until it mustered the strength to retaliate as the new holes in its stomach threatened to lose the purply ropey flesh of its entrails. It had been her turn to get knocked around after that, but she got in a few more good solid blows until Kara had been able to get up and help her finish the fight. She winced again when she accidentally pressed a little too hard on the fresh cut above her eye.  _ God, _ she was  _ sore _ .

“-national guard are finally beginning to secure the area. Our teams should complete the decontamination procedures within the hour, and Querl is scanning through traffic light surveillance to see if we missed anyone for treatment.”

Director Danvers’s low murmur carried across the DEO HUB as she filled J’onn in over three different tablets full of data. He nodded gravely and lowered his voice.

“How many did we lose?”

Lena glanced up, her heart sinking. She knew there had been casualties. The alien had appeared so suddenly, and was  _ so angry _ … her eyes slid across the HUB to Supergirl. To Kara. She was listening quietly, standing with her arms tensely crossed across her chest. Like Lena, she was a little worse for wear. There were tears in her dull suit and her face had been hastily wiped clean of grime. She looked beyond tired.

“Thirty-six.”

The sadness that swept through the room was palpable. Lena heard the agents react around her, but her vision was tunneled on Kara. Poor Kara, who had done all she could in the face of her opponent. Who would carry the weight of those thirty-six lost lives on her shoulders with all of the others she had lost in her short life. Her face crumpled and she slunk out of the HUB looking small. Lena watched her go with an ache in her chest. She hurt for those that had been killed, hurt for the family and friends left behind. And she hurt for Kara who blamed herself for their deaths even though none of them were her fault. Lena wanted to follow after her but she was torn between the ugly swirl of emotions in her chest. Torn between the old hurt from Kara lying to her and the need to go to the best friend she missed  _ so much _ and comfort her.

To tell the woman she had accidentally fallen in love with that it  _ was _ going to be okay.

It  _ had _ to be okay. Eventually. After there was a period of mourning.

When Lena finally pulled herself from her jumbled thoughts Nia flopped down next to her with a groan. She had thankfully missed the actual fighting with the alien, but she had picked up Supergirl’s slack for the evening and was sporting a new fat lip from a run-in with a mugger. Nia peeled her mask off and scrubbed tiredly at her eyes, smearing her eye makeup. Lena watched her head and look her up and down like she was surprised she was still sitting there. The younger hero nudged her with her knee and gave her a pointed look. Lena couldn’t help but bristle a little.

“What?”

Nia rolled her eyes. “You should go check on her.”

“I-”

“She’s up on deck three.”

Dreamer was heaving herself up and out of her seat before Lena could respond. As she gawped after her, almost offended, her eyes met Alex’s. The Director mouthed a  _ please? _ And like that, her decision was made for her. Lena braced herself and rose from her seat with a huff and a grimace. She left the HUB without anyone stopping her, and wandered out into the main foyer. It took her a little longer than normal, but eventually she made it up the three flights of stairs. Sure, she could have taken the elevator, but she needed the extra time to prepare herself. What did she even say? Was there  _ anything _ that she  _ could _ say? Sorry you blame yourself for innocent deaths? Lena was  _ trying _ to move past the hurt in her chest, not compound it onto Kara.

Her techy flat soled boots scuffed on the top step of the third deck. Lena gathered her wits about her like the battered EXO-Suit they had cut her out of and took a deep breath. She turned and made her way down the wide dim hall. The emergency exit lights reflected a dull eerie red on the polished floor. Her soft footsteps echoed into the empty space and the metal circuitry on her jumpsuit rattled flatly. It was easy to spot the only other lone figure at the end of the hall.

Kara was bracing her arms on the railing and looking out through the wide window that spanned the entire deck. Lena could see the defeat in her posture from fifty feet away. Kara didn’t look at her as she approached, which thankfully helped Lena not feel nearly as awkward about encroaching into her space. Kara looked too young with a too heavy weight on her shoulders. Lena followed her eyes and could barely make out the flashing emergency lights across the bay. It clicked that she was looking at the damages that she hadn’t been able to prevent and a surge of protectiveness propelled her forward the last couple feet between them. Kara jolted back to her senses as Lena took her by the arm and turned her towards her. Her blue eyes were dull with unshed tears under a furrowed brow and she opened her mouth to speak but drew up short when she realized it was her. The spark of fire she had found to tell whoever it was to leave her alone fizzled, leaving her looking even more defeated than before.

Lena watched a flash of apprehension flicker over her face and promptly forgot what she was going to say to her. What Lena  _ did _ know, was that she needed to get Kara away from the window so she would stop looking at the wreckage. Away from the tragic incident she was taking the blame for. She pressed forward and,  _ thankfully _ , Kara let herself be guided backwards until her back thumped against the concrete wall in the dim corner. The mix of old hurt and protective emotions in her chest settled, only to be replaced by betraying affection and Lena lost track of what exactly she was doing. Her hands had left Kara’s biceps and were smoothing up the sides of her neck as she stepped in too close.  _ Too _ close and  _ god she loved her _ . She could smell the soot and dust as she pulled Kara’s face down until the tip of her nose was just brushing hers. Lena felt like her heart was floating somewhere above her head and she knew,  _ she knew _ , that this wasn’t a good idea but her heart was in control. She needed comfort through contact, and she hoped that Kara did too.

“ _ Stop torturing yourself _ .” 

Warm hands curled carefully around her waist and pulled her in as Lena pressed a soft kiss to her mouth. And Kara was kissing her back and of all the feelings in the world, this one made Lena feel the most free. She sank into her with a sigh, the crushing wave of relief nearly making her knees buckle underneath her. No, she still hadn’t completely forgiven Kara. She hoped she could one day. But this stolen moment was a needed reminder that Kara was still very much her home. A home where she hoped to happily lay her heart again one day. Lena wound her arms around Kara’s neck and kissed her again, kissed her a little bit deeper, a little bit slower and wondered if one day she would be kissing her under different circumstances with different intentions. It was a nice thought.

Kara released a shaky breath and pressed her forehead to Lena’s as she wrapped her up in her arms and leaned a little heavier on the wall. They just breathed for a moment, and then Kara was leaning back in with a gentle brush of her lips against hers and a promise in her touch. Lena let her, greedily relishing the attention and committing Kara’s mouth to memory. Maybe if she forgave her this could be her new normal? Lena was sorely tempted. Even if it wasn’t this, just being able to hug her again and sprawl out on the couch with a bad movie playing sounded absolutely wonderful. Lena was sorely tempted to hope for even that.

Kara kissed softly a few more times, each one more firm than the last as if she was reminding herself that Lena was present and alive and  _ safe _ . She made Lena’s heart jump into her throat with each gentle touch. And then her lip was trembling, curling, and her shoulders began to shake as she failed to hold back her grief. Kara shuddered and crumpled again as she pressed her face into the crook of Lena’s neck. She slid to the floor with a helpless racking sob, dragging Lena with her. It took a moment to sit comfortably with how Kara was trying to curl into her, but Lena held her tight and tried to hold her together with her embrace. She pressed her face into the side of Kara’s neck and sank more comforting kisses against her skin because she didn’t know what else to do.

Lena held her. There was nothing more to say.


	14. Mom and Pop's

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Lena and Kara, both kind of tipsy, maybe sitting in a cheap, secluded restaurant and watching the rain outside, and just enjoying the feeling of being in love. They're still just friends, haven't talked about their feelings, but they know they're there. There's no nervousness or hurry. they know those feelings will wait for whenever they want to act on them.

Lena sighed and slid a little lower in her seat, pulling her pale beer and plate of golden french fries closer to the edge of the table, nestling her chin a little further into the oversized scarf swaddled around her shoulders. There was someone plunking away at a jukebox in the far corner of the little hole in the wall, the mechanical whir and switch of them cycling through the collection of 45’s was nearly drowned out by the heavy downpour. The windows and door were propped open to let in the pleasant breeze as the string of jingle bells on the door swayed with the stronger gusts. The little restaurant was clean and full of character without being kitschy, a welcome change of pace tucked away in one of the boroughs on the south side of National City. Kara had discovered it after a particularly difficult late night of patrolling and had immediately fallen in love with the couple that ran the place. Kara had in-turn taken her one evening after a horrendous day of corporate bullshit and the little restaurant had quickly become their private escape from their hectic lives.

They  _ maybe _ were able to go every other month, quietly, dressed down and humble, looking for a hearty meal and cheap drinks away from the rat race. It was a little haven for both humans and aliens, family oriented and flying way under the radar, and thankfully the one time Lena  _ was _ recognized it was someone approaching her to thank her for L-Corp’s most recent prosthetics work. The owners also knew who she was, but still welcomed her with open arms after seeing not CEO Lena Luthor, but a tired and worn down woman just looking for a place to rest for a little while. She got a free plate of corn nuggets that first night and tried not to cry into them.

The red pleather seat creaked as Kara moved around the table and slid into Lena’s side of the booth, having just ordered them another round and a few scoops of ice cream. She was moving a little languidly, having discretely ordered off of the non-human drink menu. Her cheeks were a little pink and her broad shoulders were swallowed up in her oversized pullover sweatshirt. She looked soft and comfortable and bright affection glowed warm in Lena’s chest. She couldn’t help but grin as Kara slid right up into her space and pulled her own plate of shoestring fries closer, the long line of her thigh warmly pressing into Lena’s.

“Was a little lonely over there.” She muttered into the lip of her pint glass.

Lena scrunched up her nose to adjust her glasses and nudged her with her knee, which only had her succeeding in pressing her thigh against hers. Kara huffed a laugh and jostled her back, her blush deepening a little more. They calmed down and stopped their teasing, the creeping mutual feeling of something  _ more _ settling on them like a heavy blanket. There was no reason to rush into finding out whatever this feeling could lead to, they both already knew they loved each other deeply more than friends. Lena knew they would talk about it eventually when they were ready and just relished the stolen moments that made her believe that everything was going to be okay. No, not believe.  _ Know _ .

While she was still looking out the window and watching the rain pour off of the green canvas awning, Lena reached over and silently found Kara’s hand on her lap. Their fingers wove together loosely under the table on Kara’s thigh and Lena felt a little giddy when she smoothed her thumb over hers in a soothing motion. It felt really nice.

“It’s less lonely over here.” Kara murmured again.

Lena just smiled and leaned into her shoulder as she pushed their plates closer together, humming lowly in agreement.

“I’m never lonely with you.”


	15. Come to Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ask: Lena as Kara’s new neighbour who barely ever remembers to eat. And Kara as the amazing home cook who’s already used to making family-sized meals to feed her alien metabolism, so she starts inviting Lena over for dinner everyday

The first time Kara officially met her new neighbor was only a  _ little _ stressful.

She had just sat down for her evening meal, a little later than she usually meant to but some  _ idiot _ had been texting and driving on the North bridge. It hadn’t just been a regular old water rescue when the car  _ somehow _ launched itself over the edge and onto a garbage scow. No, the car managed to crunch rear-end first into the flybridge of the barge itself. Kara not only had to remove the car, rescue the driver, and then rescue the scow operators, but then she also had to tow the thing back to a cleared dock. It had been a way more unpleasantly pungent smell than she had expected. Of course once she had done that, then she had paper work to help fill out at the DEO which would then be relayed to National City’s waste management  _ while _ she still smelled literally of hot garbage and Kara didn’t want to look at a trashcan for at least four hours. As soon as she had gotten home she had left her boots out on the fire escape, stripped out of her suit and underwear and thrown them in the wash, and would have scrubbed herself raw had it been physically possible of doing so.

Which found her damp-haired, dressed in a soft tee and sleep shorts shoving her glasses onto her face as she rushed to her front door. She rattled the chain on the door extra loud and heard her neighbor curse quietly on the other side of the door. The woman had just pushed away from where she had been leaning when Kara cracked it open.

“Hey-are you okay?”

The woman was now leaning against the opposite door slipping her keys into the deadbolt. Not  _ oh my god is she gonna pass out _ lean, but definitely doing a  _ not great _ lean. The woman started and straightened up. Kara couldn’t really make out her form around her black overcoat and oversized purse, but her inky hair was up in a severe ponytail and-

_ Wow _ .

“I’m fine. Sorry to bother you.”

Kara gawped, suddenly feeling very self conscious of her pink flamingo sleep shorts. Her new neighbor was breathtakingly gorgeous, and  _ definitely _ wearing designer clothes. Her fair skin almost made her seem ethereal. High cheekbones, a defined chin and jaw, but her eyes were the most piercing green she had ever seen. She jolted back into motion with heat creeping under her collar when she realized she was staring. Her neighbor quirked a brow up and the ghost of an amused grin flitted over her face. Kara swallowed down her nerves and opened the door a little further to not seem so creepy. Was she being creepy? Oh  _ Rao _ .

“Oh, uh, no that’s okay. I’m Kara Danvers. If you ever need anything feel free to knock.”

“Kara.” the woman murmured, as if rolling her name around in her mouth. “Thank you, I appreciate your offer.”

She paused and inhaled softly through her nose, looking over Kara’s shoulder and into her apartment.

“That smells good, don’t let me keep you.” She looked almost wistful and turned her key in her lock.

“I-wait! Uh, you know what I made too much. Do you want some?”

Kara didn’t know what made her blurt out the offer, or hastily jerk her door wide open, but she definitely wanted to get to know this woman. Her neighbor turned back to her hesitantly and looked over her shoulder again. With the brighter light Kara noticed how thin her cheeks looked and got worried again.

“Are you sure you’re okay? Can I call someone for you?”

The woman blinked and smiled awkwardly. “No, thank you. Just feeling a little hungry.”

“Yeah? Did you eat dinner? I promise it’s no trouble-ah, but, you’re totally fine if you don’t want to. If you do, I promise I’m harmless.”

“That’s what they all say.” The woman quipped, but she was still smiling. She reached her hand out. “I’m Lena.”

Kara grinned and took her hand. She couldn’t help but notice the calluses on the tips of her fingers. “So can I meet my new neighbor over some chicken veggie stir fry? Or can I give you a tupperware?”

“That certainly sounds better than the powerbar I had for breakfast. I’ll take you up on that offer, Kara Danvers.”

Kara wrinkled her nose playfully and let her hands slip out of Lena’s. “Ew, powerbars. Protein powder in gummy form.” She stepped aside in a silent offer. “I hope your lunch was better.”

Lena locked her door again and politely stepped into Kara’s apartment. “Unfortunately I didn’t have time for lunch.”

“ _ WHAT? _ ”

“ _ Kara, how much food did you make??” _

_ “I’m, uhhh, a long distance runner-” _

\--

Kara fell into an odd routine with her new neighbor Lena.

A few times a week the woman would come home barely stable on her feet, Kara would swoop out into the hall and ask her to  _ come to dinner _ . Without fail Lena would almost always say yes, on some days looking as if she might cry from the mere thought of being able to have a warm home cooked meal. Kara learned that she had a corporate job and was living in Kara’s apartment building because it allowed her to hide herself away and out of the potential spotlight. She also apparently had important ties in R&D and got a little too animated with her spring rolls one night when she learned that Kara knew what she was talking about. It honestly sounded like Lena was working herself to exhaustion  _ and forgetting to eat _ and Kara liked her too much to watch her do that to herself.

They grew closer as the weeks passed. Kara didn’t say anything when the news reel revealed that the new reclusive CEO of L-Corp Industries was Lena Luthor that lived across the hall from her. The same Lena that showed up later that night looking tired and defeated from a nasty day of press and Kara ordered them pizza. And Lena didn’t say anything when Kara forgot to move her Supergirl boots from beside the door one evening, still recovering from a particularly nasty battle and moving a little slower than usual. It was an understanding that their issues were left on the cheery welcome mat out in the hall for the sake of having a nice meal with your friend. Even if technically their families were at public odds. Kara joked one evening about who should be Romeo and Juliet, and told her to stay away from poison. A frantic hospital visit a week later had Kara tearfully telling her that  _ it was a JOKE dammit _ after Lena had a brush with cyanide from a hateful admirer. She brought her chicken soup as soon as she was released from the hospital.

Friends turned into best friends and those issues  _ were _ talked about after that scary incident. There was still an unspoken rule not to bring troubles into dinner time, but those troubles were fair game when they met up for coffee or drinks. Lena started coming to game nights and Kara would sit with her in her lab on the weekends. Sometimes Kara would bring her leftovers, touching down lightly on Lena’s L-Corp balcony with a  _ snap-pop _ of her cape. It was one of those evenings when things between them started morphing into something  _ more _ . Something warmer.

Kara handed Lena her takeout container of lo mein. They had been having meals together now for nearly seven months. Lena huffed and fiddled with the folded over fabric of her thumb loop on her wrist before taking her dinner.

“How many times have I told you not to do that? You stretch it out.”

Kara rolled her eyes and settled into the pristine white leather couch next to her. “It’s  _ fine _ . Querl can always fix it for me if I really mess it up.”

“You’re a mess.”

Kara laughed and dug into her meal, listening to Lena as she bounced a few new ideas off of her. They enjoyed each other’s company so much that Kara nearly jumped out of her skin when her comm crackled to life in her ear.

“ _ Supergirl, are you there? _ ”

She frowned and leaned up, touching the tiny ptt button. “Here.”

“ _ We’ve got some odd movement over the south end of the bay and our instruments are having difficulty pinpointing what it is. We need you to make a fly by for us.” _

“Copy, on my way.”

Kara heaved herself from the couch with a disappointed sigh and turned back to Lena as she stood up with her. “I’m sorry, I have to go.”

“I’ll walk you out.”

Lena was already leading her to the door before she finished her sentence. Before Kara could slip through the door, she paused as Lena’s hand hooked into her elbow and pulled her back. Kara let her and blushed when she realized how close they were. How pretty Lena’s eyes were and how much healthier and happier she looked from the first time they met. How soft her lips felt as they pressed to the corner of her mouth.

_ Oh _ .

“Be safe?” She murmured, her face blushing as brightly as Kara’s.

“Always.”

Kara slipped out into the cool night after leaving her own kiss on Lena’s mouth, already thinking about their next dinner. Candles and a nice bottle of wine sounded like a good plan.


	16. And you are?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: That ask on aron’s blog got my mind reeling so: old or middle-aged supergirl and Lena meeting for the first time and flirting
> 
> the ask in question: This is why we need a fic where SC meet when they’re both middle-aged or old. A super and a Luthor who manage to go a big chunk of their lives without meeting, but when they do …
> 
> Aron's response: ugh bonus if Lena has been purposefully avoiding the Supers after Lex bc she’s sure it’s just better for all of them that way but Then one day her plane suffers an engine failure above National City and she ends up being saved by the resident leader of the JL and the hero of Earth, Kara ‘Superwoman’ Zor-El herself
> 
> Thanks for letting me play with this one!

This wasn’t exactly how Lena had planned to go out.

A bomb? She still got annoyed thinking about that one time her entire left brow was singed off. A poisoning? The attempts keep getting sloppier and now she knows what cyanide smells like. Getting shot? Sometimes the three little round indentations in her hip and thigh bother her. She had lost count of how many times someone had tried to strangle her. Or how many concussions she had gotten. That one worried her the most.

But an  _ engine failure _ ?

How disappointing.

The drones she made as a ten year old were better constructed. Yet here she was, in her private (and yes, green energy thank-you-very-much) airplane, plummeting through the clouds with the oxygen mask snug over her face wondering if her lawyer had updated her will the week prior. She chanced a glance out the window and saw the sprawling cityscape of green glass nudged up against the steely blue of the pacific below her. National City. Great. She’s going for a swim.

_ Thunk _ .

The plane rocked violently and Lena was jostled in her seat. She clutched at the arm rests as her already panicked heart jolted in her chest. And then the plane was turning, decelerating, and… evening out? Her frazzled mind racing through the possibilities and came to the conclusion that this must be the work of something, some _ one _ , inhuman. Lena knew when to not ask questions, and just tried to weather the unexpected landing as well as she could, already firing off a slew of emails postponing her Hong Kong meetings due to an unfortunate delay. Let it be said that Lena Luthor was always prepared for any situation.

The whir and jostle of the landing gear deploying made her pause in her typing, and the plan touched down with a whine. Within moments they had taxi’d off the runway and drew to a stop where there was room, a whole fleet of emergency vehicles wailing to a stop around the powering down plane. Lena waited until the cabin was depressurized and removed her oxygen mask, already having thrown her items into her oversized purse. She graciously let one of the stewardesses lead her out of the plane, only pausing to check on the crew and thank the pilots, then with one final quick check of her hair and makeup stepped out into the sun.

And drew up short on the top step.

“Miss Luthor! I’m glad I caught you. Welcome to National City.”

_ Well _ .

This wasn’t exactly how Lena planned to meet the only other Super on Earth.

Standing before her was a handsome woman about her age, tanned with long windswept curls of blonde. There were the beginnings of crows feet at the corner of her vividly blue eyes and laugh lines bracketing her bow shaped lips. She looked strong and sleek in a jumpsuit of deep navy and red with gold trim. Her full length cape brushed the heels of her armored boots.

Superwoman.

But not  _ just _ Superwoman. The  _ Hero of Earth _ and current leader of Earth’s Justice League.

Lena had politely and successfully avoided Superwoman for nearly twenty years due to the rift between their families. It wasn’t out of malice, but one of the smartest ways she knew to show that she  _ wasn’t _ Lex. That she wasn’t obsessed with murdering aliens, murdering  _ Supers _ , and kept her distance. Until now. And now her teeth were on edge. Lena was annoyed that she found her attractive. So she did the next best thing to try to disarm any possibility of animosity. She relied on her poise.

“And you are…?”

She definitely said that a little more… flirty than she meant to. Lena busied herself with carefully click-clacking her way down the steps as emergency workers began to swarm the plane to keep herself from grimacing. Superwoman met her at the bottom of the steps with a hand outstretched for her to take to steady herself. It would be rude  _ not _ to take her hand, so Lena did and couldn’t help but catalogue how warm and steady she felt. She stepped down onto the tarmac with an audible sigh and let her hand slip from Superwoman’s. She oddly didn’t want to let go.

“Kara Zor-El. Though I do respond to Superwoman.” She smiled and took a step back to give Lena a little breathing room.

Up close Lena could see the dusting of freckles across her cheekbones and the bridge of her thin nose. She looked like she belonged on a California beach with a surfboard under her arm. Lena  _ thought _ she heard a warning in her voice, but when she met her eyes all she found was polite kindness.

“Well, Miss Zor-El. Thank you for saving me from an untimely demise, I believe I owe you a favor.”

“Oh-no, no not at all. This is what I do.” The woman smiled brightly, a more genuine smile than the one Lena often saw in the news.

“If you insist. However if you are ever in need of a skilled biochemical engineer or hacker, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.” Lena couldn’t help but arch a brow and take a step towards the slowly encroaching ambulance.

“I’m afraid I can’t afford your services, Miss Luthor.” She shrugged, chagrinned.

Lena paused and dug in her purse, her heart leaping into her throat for a completely different reason.  _ What the hell, she had nothing to lose. _

Lena handed Superwoman her personal business card, a smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth as she shored up her bravado.

“For you? Consultations are free as long as you bring a bottle of wine.”

Superwoman,  _ Kara _ , at least had the decency to blush and stammer a  _ thank you _ as she took the card. Lena took her reaction as a victory, pleased with herself for not completely fucking up her first  _ real _ meeting with Superwoman, and let the paramedics whisk her away.

\---

The next day the front page of National City Observer read;

**SUPERWOMAN AND LENA LUTHOR FINALLY MEET**

Under the big blocky letters was a single full-page picture. On the right, a widely grinning and blushing Superwoman. On the left, an elegant Lena Luthor in Givenchy, her premature streaks of white from the front of her hairline twisted into the elaborate plait at the nape of her neck, brow arched and smiling. Lena saved the picture to her phone and put Kara on her calendar for the following evening.


	17. Hush, Sebastian

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: Kara and Lena in the same room after the rift, nanobot jack sneaks in and starts singing the little mermaids kiss the girl...

“ ** _There you see her, sitting there across the way-_ ** _ ” _

Lena looked up in annoyance from her microscope with a long-suffering sigh. She was  _ still _ upset with Kara and this was exactly what she didn’t need right now. They were still working through their differences, or well, Lena learning how to deal with the fact that Kara lied about being Supergirl to her face  _ for years _ . The only reason she had allowed her into her Lab that evening was because it was for a consultation for the DEO. She knew that Kara was trying to make things right. She  _ also _ knew that Kara was partially composed of Disney melodies.

“ ** _She don’t got a lot to say but there’s something about her._ ** ”

“Kara, knock it off.”

“I didn’t say anything?”

Lena scoffed and swiveled on her stool. Kara was still leaning on one of the empty work benches with her phone in her hand, looking at Lena with a confused furrow in her brow. She looked insufferably attractive in her sleek new suit and Lena hated herself for that.

“Stop singing that stupid song. Or playing it.” She spun back around, ignoring how Kara’s face darkened further. “I don’t have time for you to try to win me back with Disney tunes.”

She heard Kara inhale as if she were about to say something, and released it after changing her mind. Lena knew she was being more than a little snippy, but she reasoned that she had every right to be. She adjusted the slide on the stage of her microscope.

“ ** _And you don’t know why, but you’re dying to try. You wanna kiss-_ ** _ ” _

A frustrated sound between a yell and a growl tore itself from Lena’s chest and she slammed her hands down flat on the metal counter top, her heavy microscope rattling at the force.

“Kara,  _ SHUT UP _ .”

“I didn’t  _ do _ anything!!”

Lena turned again, feeling like steam was pouring out of her ears as her face warmed. Warmed for a couple different emotions that did  _ not _ mix well together. And one particular emotion she was trying to frantically kick away.

“ _ Stop. Singing. The Little Mermaid. _ ”

“I’m  _ not _ . Lena, are you okay?”

Worry was already bleeding into Kara’s face and that just made Lena more angry.

“ ** _Yes, you want her._ ** ”

Lena froze. Kara’s lips weren’t moving. Her phone was quiet.

“Did you hear that?” She whispered, staring widely at Kara.

Kara tilted her head and listened, here eyes still not leaving Lena’s face. The seconds scraped by achingly slow. Lena could only hear the hum of the equipment in her lab but grew suspicious as Kara’s brow pulled low before looking around the room.

“ ** _Look at her, you know you do._ ** _ ” _

They both straightened up in alarm and looked around. Kara tucked her phone away and started scanning the room, pacing closer to Lena with a protective posture rippling through her frame.

“I heard it that time.” She offered, not really needing to verbally confirm that  _ no _ , Lena wasn’t imagining the music.

“ ** _It’s possible she wants you too._ ** ”

“Can’t you see where that’s coming from?” Lena snapped and spun in a circle, her heels clicking on the concrete floor.

“I’m looking.” Kara muttered and circled her, head on a swivel.

“ ** _There’s only one way to ask her._ ** _ ” _

“Kara, this isn’t funny. There shouldn’t be anyone else down here.”

“I  _ know _ I’m  _ looking _ .” Kara snapped back, drawing closer to Lena.

“ ** _It don’t take a word-_ ** _ ” _

“Kara-”

An amorphous cloud or weird buzzing, clicking little insects began forming above the table Kara had been leaning against.

“ ** _Not a single word-_ ** ”

“I see it-”

The clicking intensified and the sound whirred mechanically. The head and shoulders and arms of a man formed, strung out and  _ wrong _ . There was a terrible noise that sounded like a cry of pain and warm brown skin bubbled up across the surface of the creatures face. And then it sprouted thick black hair and a gorgeous beard.

“ ** _Go on and kiss the girl._ ** ” The man panted, too-sharp teeth flashing white in a too-wide grin.

Lena screamed.

Kara screamed.

Lena threw her microscope through a half-formed Jack.

  
“ ** _Two for two, darling! Well done!_ ** _ ” _


	18. Miss June

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: Kara gets an honorary place in the fireman’s bc she helps put out so many fires. Of course Lena has to buy a dozen copies

Like many places around the world, it was tradition for National City’s fire department to offer a yearly charity calendar of very attractive photographs of some very attractive fire fighters. Every year, Lena bought one to hang in her home office above her tinkering table because  _ dammit _ sometimes you just need some pretty people to look at when you need some motivation. Kara always teased her for having it, but Lena caught her girlfriend glancing at it whenever she was staying over. She may have bought a whole stack this year to hide them around Kara’s little apartment as a joke.

“Miss Luthor? I have a delivery for you.”

Lena looked up from her mess of paperwork in relief as Jess slipped into her office with a squat, square shaped cardboard box.

“Oh-thank you. Leave it where ever there’s room.”

Jess nodded and set it down on the coffee table in front of the white leather couch as Lena pulled another stack of documents towards herself.

“Supergirl dropped it off herself. She said it was from the fire department. Do you know what it could be?”

Lena froze.

“The fire department?”

“Yes.”

“Supergirl delivered it.”

Jess balked, a little confused by Lena’s sudden interest in the delivery. “Yes?”

Lena suddenly felt like she was going to look into that box and get herself into a lot of trouble.

“I see. Thank you, Jess. Please let me know when my next appointment has arrived.”

“Of course, Miss Luthor.”

Jess gave the new box a curious look, but dutifully left Lena to her work with a  _ click clack _ of her understated heels. Lena stared the box down from her seat, curiosity piqued and urging her to abandon her work for just a few moments. She glanced towards the door and slipped out of her seat when she noticed that Jess had taken a call. If Kara herself hadn’t dropped the box off she would have been happy to let it stay there until she finished her work day. But she  _ had _ to know now. Why had it been important enough for Kara to deliver it herself?

Lena picked up the box and brought it back to her desk, leaving it on the floor next to her chair and out of sight. She lifted one flap and  _ immediately _ , Lena knew that she really  _ shouldn’t _ look.

She  _ really _ shouldn’t.

She pulled a calendar out of the box.

A brand spanking new, glossy, full-color calendar with a group shot of National City’s most attractive fire fighters half stripped and oiled up spanned the cover of the calendar.

And an equally half stripped and oiled up Supergirl in her very own custom navy and red turnout gear, her jacket nowhere to be seen and her baggy protective pants riding low on her hips.  _ Low _ on her hips. Her wide-strap suspenders were loose around her thighs.

“Oh  _ no _ .”

Lena settled into her seat and just  _ stared _ . She was very knowledgeable in how attractive Kara was. But this? This was extremely unfair. Lena flipped the calendar open, her jaw falling slack when she saw the bonus photograph above the smaller thumbnails for the whole year. Kara was standing nonchalantly, hip cocked out to the side with those  _ stupid pants _ slipping a little further, one suspender strap on her shoulder and the other dangling, the matching navy sports bra and heavy boots a little dusty, and an oversized metal ladder over her shoulders. She was laughing, her hair messy curls and her arms flexing as she held the ladder steady. On either side of her the twelve other fire fighters of men and women hung off the ladder about a foot off the ground.

Lena tore the plastic wrapping off and turned immediately to the month of June.

Kara’s month.

“ _ Oh no. _ ”

Kara was staged with what Lena knew to be a donated vehicle for a training burn, her booted foot up on the charred bumper and a thick heavy hose inflated across her broad shoulders as she sprayed into the shattered out windshield. Black soot was smeared on her face, arms, and abs. And those _fucking pants_ were _so low_. She looked powerful. Her hair was wild, sticking to her neck and shoulders as she stared the camera down with her piercing bright blue eyes. And she was  _ wet _ . Water dripping down her front, dampening the front of her pants and bra, smearing the soot and beading up on the body oil and _heaven help her,_ Lena was about to give that fire hose a run for its money.

Lena was holding her phone to her ear before she had finished dialing Kara’s phone number, too distracted by the sheer amount of skin printed in her hand. Kara picked up on the second ring, the ambient sounds of traffic crackling through the speaker.

“ _ Hi!” _

“Do you still have those pants?”

The words were out of Lena’s mouth before she realized and  _ honestly _ she didn’t care.

“ _ Pants? _ ”

Lena let her eyes get stuck on the low V of her hips.

“Don’t play innocent with me, Miss June.”

Kara laughed lowly.

  
“ _ I’ll bring them over tonight. _ ”


	19. Turnout Pants

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so much for a teen rated series LMAO
> 
> an after hours continuation of Miss June. i'm not sorry.

Lena heard the quiet thump of Kara’s boots on the balcony and her heart leapt into her throat with excitement. She had been waiting for her as patiently as she could, the new calendar always somewhere within sight. Her hands had maybe gotten just a  _ little _ impatient not long ago, but she had been able to wrangle herself before she completely gave in to temptation and slid her hand beneath the barrier of her pants. It didn’t mean that she didn’t try to relieve a little bit of the pressure  _ over _ said pants. She  _ had _ discovered that the corner of her desk in her home office was a very nice height. Lena looked up and watched Kara slip into her apartment, her heartbeat plunging low in between her legs.

Those  _ fucking pants _ .

Kara had indeed brought those navy turnout pants. She had brought them as most of her  _ outfit _ . In fact, she was very nearly wearing what she had worn for the shoot. Pants and the heavy boots, low cut matching sports bra, wide-strap suspenders, and… a blush for  _ days _ . Now  _ that _ wasn’t in the original photograph.

“Kara, are you alright?”

Kara tugged the slatted blinds shut and shifted, her breath hitching visibly in her chest. Lena rose up from her seat on the couch, almost in concern. But then she noticed the front of Kara’s pants. How they  _ definitely _ had something else in them, tenting out in an inappropriate manner. Lena could feel her stomach swoop and heat lurched in between her legs.

“Did you bring me a present?” She nearly purred and rounded the low coffee table, eyes locked on Kara’s crotch. Her heartbeat was a hot steady throb in between her legs, distracting her from the horribly cheesy thing she had said.

Kara walked towards her and the wide-stepped swagger and shift of something  _ else _ behind the fly of her pants made Lena feel like she was about to lose her mind. She reached out and let her hands skim over the warm planes of Kara’s abs, her lip catching in her teeth as she noticed how whatever Kara was wearing was pressing against the inside of her pants. She could feel her breathing washing over the side of her neck as long fingers started tugging at the button of her jeans.

“What’s got you so worked up, babe?” She murmured and tugged at the front of her navy turnout pants.

Kara breathed a hum of pleasure into her ear as the toy shifted in her pants. “New something.”

Lena hummed in curiosity, tugging a little more to look down her pants as Kara jerked the zipper down on hers. She couldn’t see anything but skin. No leather straps, no harness, but the dark shape of what was unmistakably a dildo. A dildo that was slipped up and into Kara, only held in place by her own strength and will.

“_Oh._ _That_ new something.”

Kara slid her hands into her pants and hooked her thumbs into the waistband of Lena’s underwear. She pushed them down her hips as her nose brushed across the line of her jaw and soft lips pressed a kiss just next to her ear.

“ _ I can smell you _ .”

Lena blushed at Kara’s lilting kryptonian and slid her hand down. She cupped Kara firmly through the front of her pants, drawing another gasp from her as she felt out the length of the toy.

“Fucking  _ pants _ .”

Kara was kissing her hotly now before she had a chance to say anything else, her hands shoving Lena’s pants hastily down her thighs as she licked into her mouth. Lena met her in the middle, first helping Kara divest her, and then started undoing the fasten of the pants that had plagued her all day. She felt hot and tingly and she was almost uncomfortably slick and  _ god _ she wanted Kara. Her back hit the wall of her living room just as Kara shrugged one suspender strap off, allowing her pants to slip low on her hips.  _ Low _ on her hips.

Blue silicone came free as Lena pulled down the zipper of her pants while Kara adjusted the one remaining strap to hang loose, allowing the waistband of her pants to ride low enough so they wouldn’t impede her. Lena glanced down couldn’t take her eyes off of her. She watched with a slack jaw as Kara fished a tiny bottle of lube out of one of the pockets and and emptied it onto the toy jutting out from her hips. The empty plastic bottle was shoved back into her pocket and Lena reached in between them and took ahold of the toy before her girlfriend could. Kara slumped forward and moaned in her ear as she pumped her hand, twisting and pushing and tugging her hand along the length of it to spread out the lube.

Strong hands walked greedily around the flare of her hips and Lena quite suddenly found herself lifted up and pressed into the wall, the toy slipping from her hand as she reached up to hold onto Kara’s shoulders. Heat crawled up her neck and bled down her spine as Kara pinned her, reaching around her and panting into her mouth as she pressed the slick head of the toy against her. Lena wrapped her legs around Kara’s waist, chancing another look down as she felt her start to press into her. She moaned high in her chest as Kara started to shallowly thrust into her, letting her get used to the new shape. Lena felt like coals were sitting low in her belly as she watched Kara sink further and further into her.

A few achingly slow moments later had Kara press her hips up and finally flush to hers. Lena couldn’t say anything but a wordless moan as she clung tighter around Kara’s shoulders. Kara readjusted her hold on her, drew nearly all the way out of her, dragging across a spot with a slick friction that made her toes curl, and then thrust fully back into her with a breathless noise of pleasure as the toy shifted in her from the force. The smooth stretch made Lena feel like she was made of limp noodles and mouthed greedily back over to Kara’s mouth as she started a generous motion. Each firm, languid stroke had the both of them trying to draw the other closer, moaning through sloppy kisses and rolling their hips together. Over the slick sticky sound of Kara disappearing into her, Lena could hear the rustle of those damn pants with every thrust.

Lena raked her hands through Kara’s hair and fisted tightly to hold on when her powerful hips snapped up into her. A throaty groan vibrated loudly from Kara’s chest and she thrust into her again with a rough roll of her hips, still angling her hips on the withdrawal to rub against that one spot that made Lena see stars. Lena gasped and clung tighter at the increased friction, which in turn made Kara do it again. And  _ again _ . All shreds of higher cognitive thought were obliterated by Kara filling and stretching and grinding her soft skin into her clit over and over and  _ over _ and  _ god _ the woman was a  _ machine _ . The deep seated coil of molten hot pleasure low in her belly tightened with each thrust and firm sticky press against her clit and Lena only had enough sense to hang on as Kara tugged her quickly towards the edge of release. She could feel a bead of sweat tracking down the center of her spine and Lena was so hot and out of breath she felt like she had just sprinted a mile. Sparks crackled under her skin and the heavy heady pull of pleasure sat low in her hips. Everything felt  _ too hot _ . Kara’s skin, her hands splayed across her ass, her breath on her lips, the silicone thrusting into her.

“H’ close’re you?”

Lena managed to whine something that sounded like a cross between  _ please _ and  _ fuck me _ and  _ I’m so close _ . She could feel herself teetering on the cusp of release and if Kara would just.

Keep.

_ Thrusting _ .

White hot heat blossomed out from in between her legs as she tightened and came hard around the warm silicone pulsing into her. Her breath froze in her chest and she pushed her hips forward, trying to instinctively get as close as physically possible as Kara kept grinding into her. She could feel her mouth fall open in a silent  _ oh _ as wave after wave of delicious pleasure pulsed through her body. The continuous stretch and pull against the spot inside her had her tumbling into a second orgasm on the tail end of her first before she could barely begin to breathe. Heat burned in her face as she spasmed again around Kara and then they were both quite a bit more wet as she squirted onto her. It wasn’t much, but she looked down and watched it drip onto Kara’s pants for a moment until another wave of heat made her squeeze her eyes shut and seek out Kara’s mouth again. In her mindless pursuit of pleasure, she felt one of Kara’s hands slip in between them and work mindlessly over her own clit as her hips stuttered into Lena. She moaned her own release into her lips, the back of her hand brushed against Lena’s abdomen with each frantic swipe of her fingers.

Eventually her hips slowed and Kara sank into her, pinning her hand in between their hips and holding Lena up into the wall. She pressed lazy kisses into her lips, laving into her mouth with a pleased sigh as Lena clumsily carded her fingers through her messy hair. She felt like a melted bowl of jello in a Kara sandwich.

“Guess you really like these pants?” Kara mumbled against her with a teasing rock of her hips.

Lena’s breath hitched in her chest as her hips jumped against the gentle friction. She could feel her body, still not so far from the edge, wake up again against Kara.

“They’ll look better on my floor.”

Kara made a noise that sounded like approval and toed off her boots. The last suspender strap slipped from Kara’s shoulder and the thick navy turnout pants crumpled heavily to the floor. Kara stepped out of them and in a heartbeat had Lena laid out on her couch, hands worming their way underneath the rumpled t-shirt she hadn’t had a mind to take off yet. Kara rocked into her again, gasping a soft moan as the motion made the silicone shift inside of her again. Lena let her pull off her shirt and pulled Kara back down into her and squeezed her thighs around her hips.

“ _ You look better inside me _ .”

  
The next coherent thing Lena said later that night was  _ you should wear those pants more often. _


	20. Into Focus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: @writing-prompt-s: You live in a world, where things which are important to you are rendered in high quality, while things you don't care about are rendered in low quality. One day you see a woman in midst of a low-quality crowd, and although you two never met, she is rendered in 4K. Sounds like some kind of Supercorp VR to me :) Love your writing and art - keep going - you're amazing!
> 
> Original answer: ooohhh interesting. i think it would be fun to twist it as if lena had created the vr in college as a thesis project or something and she keeps seeing the woman (kara). then one day she’s saved by supergirl catching her helicopter. :D
> 
> *i have no idea how artificial intelligence works, i’m just trying to pretend i sound smart. just roll with it lol. I honestly wrote this bc i wanted to write a really stupid shrek joke.

Technology as a whole, could be predictably unpredictable.

Plug in some numbers, expect some results.

Plug in some numbers, the program fails. Or errors out. Or freezes.

Technology was as wondrous as it was frustrating. 

Technology was a comfort to Lena. It had rules and order and you had to do things a certain way for it to work. Lena liked rules.

In college as she began her Master’s studies, it became clear that the future definitely held a possibility for virtual reality. Whether that be a way to safely train laborers, medical professionals, or helping ease people into different treatments for various forms of ptsd, there was definitely a niche there to help people. It became her brain child. Her utmost focus. Her  _ baby _ . However, Artificial Intelligence computers didn’t always learn through rules and algorithms. Lena had originally built the neural network to learn through sophisticated gradient descent approaches on top of a hand-programmed neural topology. After only a few months of construction and testing, Lena determined that her AI needed to be far more complex than she originally had planned. It needed not just an artificial neural network but the capabilities of a deep neural network able to parse and manipulate data in not just a linear relationship, but also a non-linear relationship. But this AI couldn’t be shallow, it needed the layers to be able to train itself through pushing data through different levels of computation. It needed to be able to recognize what was important through abstract data and Lena made another shift towards branching into a recurrent neural network paired with deep learning. A dynamic learning behavior able to pull from its own memories. However it came to be a more chaotic machine, operating on the linear progression of time as opposed to operating through a hierarchal structure. She had often called it her onion because of all it’s layers.

She called her Fiona.

Lena developed Fiona into a complex learning system capable of recognizing tone and emotion in human correspondence. Capable of solving queries and finding solutions best fitting the original problem while still retaining a humane and thoughtful approach to the presented event. Capable of helping teach and guide humans to safely learn and navigate situations. Capable of diffusing volatile clashes and even tell jokes. But there was one partition of Fiona that Lena had not shared with the world yet. A world where you could step into your own life to help identify factors that made you happy or unhappy. A way to help you identify the stressors in your life so you could learn how to live with them in a more healthy manner, or learn to let them go as a way to help aid cognitive behavioral therapy. A way to remind yourself that there  _ is good in this world _ and to not give up hope. These identified influences would be cast into crystal clear relief and properly identified based off of a biological reaction as well as provided data. It worked fantastically and Lena was more likely to treat herself to a special coffee or baked good on her off days.

She called this world Vision.

Except… Fiona had a funny sense of humor.

Ever since her inception, she enjoyed playing harmless jokes on Lena when she wasn’t working on a query, much like the classic  _ made you look _ that children played. Whenever Lena would step into Vision, Fiona would help her with her initial set of tasks. But then if Lena decided to just look around for the hell of it, Fiona would start to have some fun with her. She’s maybe have a rainbow colored cat twist around her feet, or perhaps send a flock of vivid fantastical birds soaring overhead. It wasn’t until Lena started feeling lonely from a romantic standpoint that Fiona started trying to help her identify types of people she was drawn to without being prompted. A punk goth with a dramatic hairdo, an hourglass figure that made her envious, and winged eyeliner sharp enough to cut. A tall handsome man with warm dark skin, gentle hands, and a perfect beard.

And then a Woman.

Tall, broad shouldered, strong arms and lithe legs and windswept blonde curls. The kindest bright blue eyes and the cutest dusting of freckles on her nose. The first time Fiona showed her the Woman Lena nearly full-on body blushed. Fiona had found her flustered sputtering as she pulled out of Vision highly amusing and told her so. Lena had admonished her, but since Fiona knew that she could get a rise out of her with the Woman, she exploited it when she wanted something enough. It wasn’t often. Fiona didn’t always show Lena the Woman. Enough for Lena to notice, but just enough for her to count on one hand. But then one day, Fiona showed her the woman for a completely different reason.

“You are happy when you see her. I want you to be happy, mother.”

The Woman strode up to Lena, smiling brightly and beckoning her towards large fountain at the park she had dropped herself into. Lena didn’t follow.

“You’re only showing me a generated composition of someone I find attractive.”

“No, she is real.”

“...please don’t help me fall in love with a stranger, Fiona. It’s not fair.”

“Shall I cease her appearances?”

“Yes.”

“Understood. I am sorry if I have caused you more pain.”

Lena sighed and pulled herself out of Vision with a swipe across the bridge of her nose. The Woman faded in front of her with a kind smile and Lena missed her immediately.

“It’s alright. You didn’t know.”

As the years progressed, Fiona learned and grew into a highly sophisticated and competent machine. Aiding people across a range of different fields from medical, to mental health, to engineering, to rescue. Fiona never showed Lena the Woman again, though she did have something teasing to say after Lena dated Veronica and then Jack. Lena let her. She didn’t have a leg to stand on against such a smart machine. But it made her wonder if Fiona had been right about the Woman. She had been right about the other two people, even if they had ended on unfortunate notes.

And then her helicopter was spinning out of control.

Lena clung to her seat, hair whipping around her face as the pilot slumped over and Fiona was wailing instructions in her ear, trying to get her to  _ just reach out _ and do something that sounded a lot like trying to regain control of the spin. If only her heart wasn’t trying to leap out of her chest as she panicked and the streets of National City spun closer. If only she could make her hands  _ work dammit _ so she could actually try to  _ do something _ but the g-force of the careening helicopter made it hard enough for her to stay upright in her seat. She felt lightheaded with fear and from the violent spin, feeling as if she couldn’t draw in enough air.

A streak of red and blue.

A second streak.

The helicopter slowed out of its spin and began to rise, the control panels still flashing red and the alarms still screaming. Up up up she went, the black oily smoke billowing out now instead of into the cabin to choke her. Up past the green glass sky scrapers, up past the people watching in the windows. She could see her reflection, wavy in the glass. The form of a person, of a  _ Super, _ supporting the helicopter from one of the landing skids. Fiona chimed up in her ear and told her that she now had a ninety-nine point nine percent chance of survival, as opposed to the four point six percent from the moment prior. Lena ignored her as the helicopter was safely returned to the top of the building. The door was wrenched open as she tugged off her headset, sucking in deep breaths as she raked her hair out of her face. Lena turned to the Super and drew up short. Lena’s world screeched to a halt.

It was the Woman.

She was exactly how Fiona had rendered her, down to the very last freckle and the angle of her jaw. She was  _ real _ . And she was  _ Supergirl _ .

“You’re safe now.”

Lena blinked back into focus and spat out the first thing that came to her mind.

“What the  _ hell _ was that?”

Supergirl laid her hand on the unconscious pilot’s chest to check him for injury, her blue eyes full of worry cutting back to Lena.

“Someone’s trying to kill you.”

Fiona piped up in Lena’s ear.

  
“ _ I could have told you that _ .”


	21. Private Lessons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: lena joins a self defense class and is probably most definitely the best in the class and her cute instructor (who Lena is 98% sure is supergirl??) cant for the life of her figure out why Lena is taking the class and not teaching it and is also very smitten with her.
> 
> original answer: Quick somebody write a thing where Lena asks for “some advanced moves” and their private session devolves into messy sex after Kara pins her one too many times.
> 
> New answer: Lena is a thirsty binch and so am I.
> 
> i didn't edit this and it got fuckin long YEET

Joining a community self defense class may have been a bit more… low skilled than she had imagined it would be. It  _ was _ an advanced  _ community _ class after all, and Lena quite frankly was still a leap and a bound ahead of them. Even if she did lean more towards a brawling style.

Maybe she just liked punching.

But in reality, Lena had been hoping to maybe learn a few more advanced moves from someone who  _ wasn’t _ military, preferably a civilian well versed in protecting their wellbeing in a more organic setting. There was only so much she could learn about grappling from a retired Navy Seal who was used to throwing other bodies around on the regular. She needed someone who understood what it was like to be  _ like her _ . If that made any sense in the slightest.

Which found her standing along the edge of a padded room in the National City YWCA, trying not to bring attention to herself. There were both men and women milling about, and quite a few rainbow or Stonewall Sports League shirts being sported. The familiar rainbow put her at ease in one sense, but the curious glances didn’t help the rest of her nerves. As it neared 6PM, a new woman bounded into the room in sleek leggings and an old NCU pullover.

“Alright let’s get started! I’m Kara, as most of you know.” There was a murmur of comfortable greeting around the room and Lena found herself frozen in place.

Kara looked all too familiar but she couldn’t quite place her. She was a little nerdy looking with trendy tortoiseshell glasses and a bright green scrunchy holding up her ponytail, but there was something about her confidence that screamed  _ danger Will Robinson _ . But… maybe not necessarily danger? And she was also quite attractive. Lena blinked.  _ She _ was the instructor?

“We’ll start with some warm ups and stretching and do some basic refresher katas before jumping into what I want to teach you today.”

Kara whipped her sweatshirt off and Lena felt a blush crawl up her neck because  _ wow _ she had broad shoulders and some arms that looked like they could snap someone in half. She could also faintly make out the line of defined abdominal muscles and Lena decided that she had  _ definitely _ made a good decision as her initial skepticism flew out the window. The shuffle around the room snapped her out of her ogling stare and got her back in focus. Lena adjusted her zip-up and joined the rest of the group as they started a slow lap.

An hour and a couple fresh bruises later found Lena still up and bouncing on her toes, adrenaline thundering through her veins as her opponent panted and slapped the floor in a tap-out. She felt pretty damn good as her victory high sang in her blood. Lena reached down and offered a hand to the man she had just flipped no less than six times. He grinned ruefully and let her help him up.

“Well done, Kieran. Remind me not to get on your bad side.”

“You’re safe with me, Querl.” She fired back just as Kara called their session to a close.

“Great work today everybody! Let's do a quick cool down and huddle up before we have to go back to the real world.”

Lena and her new training buddy, Querl, joined the group again and followed Kara around the long room a couple times. She did her best not to look at her new instructor, who despite her sunny disposition was truly a force to be reckoned with. She had show a level of terrifying skill that Lena had only seen in some of the more ruthless military personnel she had been around, and she was very knowledgeable in helping the other students adjust to better execute techniques for grapples and escapes based off of their body type. In fact, Lena was a little jealous because she had only watched her for a few moments and moved on after a handful of simple comments. Lena knew she was good, but was she really  _ that _ good? Why didn’t Kara pay  _ her _ any attention? Thankfully Querl piped up with an unimportant question and pulled Lena from her mental stewing. Once their bodies were loosened up, she led them to the center of the room and circled them up for some stretching.

“Okay-Nia twist a little more, good there you go-  _ Okay _ so I have some observations for everyone, which good news! You all have some solid base skills. I’m going to think of what new techniques will work best for you and we’ll go person by person next week. Sound good?”

There was a murmur of agreement around the room and Lena leaned deep into her hamstring stretch. They wrapped their stretching up and Lena bid Querl goodbye with a lazy wave, the adrenaline having faded off, leaving her tired and sluggish after an intense workout. She was just shrugging her discarded zip-up back on over her damp shirt when a warm body slid into her space.

“Doctor Kieran?”

Lena started and looked up, coming face to face with Kara. There was a curious crinkle in her brow and an impressed grin tugged at her mouth.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but may I ask why you’re in my class? You could be  _ teaching _ it with how advanced you are.”

Up close Lena could see the freckles on her cheeks and the bridge of her nose and  _ wow _ her eyes were  _ really blue _ .

“Doctor?”

“Lena! Ehrm. Um.” Lena blushed scarlet. “My name is Lena.”

Kara smiled and ducked her head, long fingers adjusting her glasses as a blush warmed her face. Lena couldn’t help but follow the flex of her bicep, and then a strange niggling thought wormed into the back of her head. Kara seemed uncannily  _ familiar _ .

“Okay. Lena. What are you hoping to get out of this class?”

“Well, I was, um. Hoping to get some more practical real world experience? There’s only so much a Navy Seal can teach you solely based on technique and scenario.”

Kara’s eyebrows rose and her mouth fell open in an  _ aha _ . “That explains it.” She murmured more to herself than to Lena.

“I think we can do that for you, Lena. I’ll need to do some thinking, but I’ll see you next week?” Kara grinned, broad shoulders hunching up cutely around her ears.

“I-I’ll be here.”

“Great! I’ll see you then!”

Kara reached out and squeezed her elbow warmly, and then bounded away. Lena could feel the heat of her hand all the way home.

* * *

The week came and went and Lena found herself warming up with Querl at the start of her second class and trying to ask vague questions about Kara.

“She works for CatCo magazine as the head of their Extra Terrestrial West Coast Correspondent department.”

Lena glanced over at him as they looped around the room, her curiosity growing. “What exactly does that mean?”

“She makes sure that the voices of non-human interviewees are represented correctly and respectfully. Proper representation helps break down the stigmatism held by humans.”

“She’s an alien rights activist?”

“Very much so. Is that…” He cut his eyes towards her warily. Lena balked.

“ _ Oh _ . Oh, no, that’s not a problem at all. I fully support equal rights for all citizens of earth. My personal work supports that belief.”

Querl relaxed and gave her a small smile. “It pleases me to hear that, Doctor. Thank you.”

Lena suddenly felt that the conversation had just gotten a lot more personal and opted for a kind smile rather than another question. The class progressed and Kara made her rounds from person to person, teaching and coaching and helping her students plan goals to reach. While students waited their turn, they were encouraged to continue sparring if they didn’t want to stand around and wait. Which found Lena and Querl at the end of the line, and Lena flipping him for the nth time. He had gotten in his own successful flips and grapple breaks, but Lena was fast.  _ Slippery _ he called her. But he was tricky too and Lena found him incredibly hard to read.

“Were you holding out on me last week?” Lena panted and picked herself up off the mat.

“Perhaps.” Querl cocked his head and offered her a hand up. Lena took it and let him haul her to her feet.

Lena grinned widely and leapt.

She swung her legs up over her head and caught Querl off guard, levering her body up with a grunt and wrapping her legs around his neck. She let go of his hand as he made a startled noise and aggressively twisted her upper body down and towards the ground with as much torque as she could muster. She pulled him with her, using the back of her knee against the back of his neck to apply the force of her take down maneuver. Querl made a strangled grunting sound and flipped forward head over heels, landing heavily on the mat with an  _ oof _ as Lena rolled away and popped up to her feet with a cocky smirk.

“ _ Hey!  _ Self defense  _ only _ , Black Widow!”

Kara’s admonishing tone cut across the room and Lena blushed under the other woman’s stern frown. She held up her hands in an apologetic manner and helped Querl back to his feet again. He didn’t look upset, but rather impressed.

“Remind me to  _ really _ never get on your bad side.”

The class progressed and Lena behaved, until finally Kara reached them. Querl loosened his grip and let Lena slip free as she came to a stop in front of them. Kara pinned Lena with a no nonsense look and stepped close.

“That was a really cool move but you totally violated the class waver you signed. Please don’t do it again.”

Lena nodded and tried not to look too closely at the angle of her jaw. “Got it.”

Kara nodded, pleased with her answer. “Good. Okay, so! Let’s get started.”

Kara walked them through some fairly advanced ways to break a couple different grapple holds even though both Lena and Querl already knew them. For a spilt second, when Kara was working with Querl, she thought they were moving just a bit faster than normal. Lena also noticed that Kara looked absolutely unruffled. Not even out of breath. And she was  _ fast _ . It was like watching someone made of water. She was unfairly attractive to watch and Lena was very aware of how long it had been since she had dated anyone.

“Doctor?”

Lena blinked back into the room, just barely catching Kara’s knowing smirk before she bent down to adjust the laces on her sneaker. Heat crawled up her neck and she cleared her throat, trying not to panic at being caught staring.

“Yes Querl?”

“I believe it is your turn.” He informed her and took a step back after clapping a hand on her shoulder.

Lena nodded mutely and tried vainly to reign in her nerves. Kara straightened back up.

“Okay, Lena. Let’s start with some escapes.”

Kara  _ really _ put her through her paces. At one point Lena thought she was admonishing her again for her previous stunt, trying and failing over and over to get out of her grapples but she gave her some quick praise, walked her through a few of them more slowly, and they moved on. Lena tried very hard not to dwell on how warm her hands felt when she touched her, or how steady and strong she was held against her. It definitely made focusing  _ difficult _ . Where Querl was difficult to read physically, Kara was difficult to read emotionally. The session finished out and Lena left the class flustered, with more questions than answers.

  
  


Lena spent the entire following week looking up everything she could find about Kara Danvers.

The woman, on the surface, was an outstanding person. For someone so young, just a little older than her, she already had a Pulitzer. She was also the only reporter that Supergirl would give exclusive interviews to, which Lena found highly interesting. But only printed interviews. Never video. The more Lena learned about her, the more pictures she selfishly looked at, the more attractive she was to her on not just a physical level. Lena wanted to get to know Kara as a person. She was  _ interested _ . It didn’t help her hoping that she couldn’t find any trace of a significant other. Yes, she  _ had _ seen the pictures of her marching in the National City Pride parade with a pink and yellow and blue tie dyed tee on. No, she wasn’t trying to make assumptions, but she certainly wasn’t dressed like a Straight Person at Pride.

But yet she  _ still _ seemed  _ familiar _ . She had a wild thought the night before her third class that maybe Kara Danvers  _ was _ Supergirl. Lena had almost choked on her scotch at the thought. It was ridiculous.

And  _ yet _ .

Lena didn’t completely dismiss the assumption.

* * *

Lena was the first to class the following evening with a mind to get in some extra yoga before everyone else arrived. Her work day had been extra stressful with more corporate bullshit than usual and she wanted to make sure she really got her workout in tonight or tomorrow would be rough. The quiet room for even fifteen minutes would be a reprieve.

Except Kara was there too.

“Hey! You’re thirty minutes early. Everything okay?”

Lena stuttered and tried not to stare at the unfairly trim waist and abdominal muscles as Kara rocked up from the floor. Or how tight her compression shorts were across the flare of her hips.

Lena really needed to do something about the coil of attraction low in her belly.  _ Soon _ .

“Oh, um. I’m fine. Just was looking for a quiet spot, but I can go somewhere else. It looks like you were here first.” She started back pedalling when that same smirk started pulling at the corner of Kara’s mouth. And then she was blushing again. Oh no.

“Not at all, I need to run to the reception desk anyways.” Kara scooped the tank top up off the floor and Lena wondered why she hadn’t seen it.

She may have watched the stretch and pull in her stomach a little too closely as she put her shirt back on, heat bleeding up her spine.  _ Oh no _ .

“I’ll leave you to it!” Kara grinned brightly and stepped around her. She was nearly out the door when Lena blurted out-

“ _ Can you teach me? _ ”

Kara’s sneakers squeaked on the floor as she came to an abrupt halt. Lena could feel her face burning redder than a stoplight but she couldn’t just pretend she hadn’t blurted that out.

“I, well, you see-” She took a deep breath as Kara turned back towards her. “I am well aware that I am far too advanced for this class, yet I know there is still more that I  _ can _ learn. Just… perhaps not  _ here _ . You are very competent and  _ incredibly _ skilled compared to my other instructors and I would of course be willing to pay you for your time, no question on that.” She took another breath.

“If you have the time, of course.”

Kara grinned and held her hand out towards Lena’s phone. Lena unlocked it to a new contact tab gave it to her, and watched her type her number in with her heart thundering in her chest. Kara handed it back with a sunny smile and little bit of a bounce.

“Call me sometime.”

Lena thought she would melt on the spot.

* * *

Had Lena looked back out into the hall she would have seen Kara have her own small panicked melt down, her face redder than a fire truck.

* * *

Class was.

_ Difficult _ .

Kara really put them through the wringer, focusing a bit more on conditioning at the beginning of their time together and then walking them through some very awkwardly posed grapples with a rubber knife and how to break out of them.

“You’ve all learned the text book moves, but assailants don’t play by the rules. You need to be prepared for anything, which can mean some very awkward and hard to break holds.”

Throughout the entire class Lena could feel Kara’s eyes on her. She never caught her looking at her and the tell tale prickle of heat on the back of her neck distracted her more times than she could count, giving Querl too many openings to drop her to the mat. This of course left her feeling frustrated with herself, and by the time Kara reached them she was antsy and on edge for a variety of reasons. Kara still looked too good in her tank top and compression shorts and Lena was self conscious of her messy ponytail and damp t-shirt. Kara gave no hint at their earlier conversation and conducted herself with her usual immaculate professionalism. Lena  _ almost _ wanted her to slip up so she’d know that she wasn’t just being ridiculous in her hormone stew, especially since her heart leapt annoyingly into her throat when it was her turn.

Lena found herself in a variety of odd twisted up positions, getting more and more agitated as she tried and failed to get out of Kara’s grasp, getting poked over and over by the blunted rubber training knife. But her grip was iron and she was steadier than stone as she kept trying to coax her to  _ twist this way _ or to  _ shift your weight to your right _ . When she finally managed to slip out of Kara’s grasp a solid couple minutes later she couldn’t help but shout a  _ HAH _ . Kara was smiling widely, looking proud of her for finally getting away and offered a high five. Lena slapped her hand to hers a little harder than she meant to and hissed at the sting. Kara laughed and flipped the knife over into a reverse grip.

“Okay Rambo, one more time and I’ll leave you alone.”

Kara bounced on her toes as Lena slipped into a defensive stance, her eyes cataloguing every move of the woman in front of her. She stayed light on her feet, weight balanced through the center of her body as her heart thundered in her chest. Kara moved. If it could be  _ called _ moving. She was scary fast and Lena quickly found herself reacting on instinct as the rubber knife appeared in her face. She ducked and knocked her arm away, trying to put distance between them but Kara moved  _ again _ and a strong arm was wrapping around her torso from behind. Lena’s heart leapt into her throat and she twisted again, trying to break out of Kara’s grip. When it proved fruitless, she shifted into a more combative mindset and fell back on the move that she had used to take Querl down the previous week.

Lena changed her grip on Kara and hauled her legs up and around her shoulders with a grunt, her upper body still caught in Kara’s hold. But she surprised her with the sudden weight change and they tipped forward as Lena threw her weight towards the mat. Kara squeaked as Lena managed to free herself and they fell to the floor with a shared  _ oompf _ . With triumph racing through her veins Lena kept twisting, reaching to grapple Kara as she lay half-crumpled up on her shoulders. She got as far as wrapping an arm around a powerful thigh and then her world was spinning, weightless as she felt Kara’s arms wrap around her again, and her back thudded to the mat before she could even determine which way was up.

A heavy, warm body was pressing flush into her hips, pinning one leg to the mat and keeping her off kilter with the opposite knee under her hip. A toned arm was wrapped around her unpinned knee and reaching through between them to keep a firm grip on her wrist, effectively removing any kind of leverage she could use to escape. Her perfect view of the ceiling was blocked by Kara leaning over her with a flushed face and Lena was reminded quite bluntly of how close they were as the pressure in between her legs grew when she strengthened her grapple hold. Her blue eyes were far darker than any other time Lena had seen them and she looked just as flustered as Lena felt. Her skin tingled warmly where Kara was pressed into her and the familiar lurching pull of arousal low and heavy in her belly made her breath catch. Lena was again reminded by her body of how long it had been since she had been touched by someone else and had to beat back the greedy impulsive urge to roll into Kara. She gasped for breath as her heartbeat throbbed lower than was appropriately necessary and-

The rubber knife tapped her unprotected ribs.

“Nice try, Doctor Luthor.”

Kara slipped away from her with the gentlest touch and was on her feet calling class to a close. Lena stared at the tile ceiling a moment longer, feeling bewildered and uncomfortably turned on and still feeling the warm wash of Kara’s breath over her chin. She was quickly second guessing her request to ask for a private lesson.

  
  


On her ride home Lena had a small panic attack when it registered that Kara knew who she really was.

* * *

Lena was annoyed to acknowledge that she had fallen head over heels into lust for one Kara Danvers in barely a month.

She didn’t even  _ know _ the woman but she  _ wanted _ her. What annoyed her the most is that she was still drawn to her on a personal level. Lena always felt, without fail, like she knew Kara already. They hadn’t had much time to really talk in class but it felt like the had known each other for years. Lena couldn’t pinpoint the reasoning. Kara was genuine and truly friendly and she couldn’t sense any underlying motivators. It was just who she was and Lena, aching for any kind of positive human contact, was drawn like a moth to an open flame. Lena knew she was being horrendously predictable about it all, and definitely way too quick to trust. But hell, how could she  _ not _ be? 

And Kara?

She still couldn’t shake the thought that there was something  _ more _ to her. Something inhuman. She was faster than Lena’s eyes could keep up with, she was never out of breath (except for when she had Lena pinned), she was stronger than some of the Seals she had been trained by, she had blonde loopy curled hair and bright blue eyes, and the shape of her shoulders… Kara  _ had _ to be Supergirl. And Lena was okay with that. She held no ill will towards the Supers, and in fact went out of her way to try to stay away from them as far as possible. She had no interest in causing their family any more pain after all that they had gone through, and distance with polite acknowledgement felt like the best first step after a sincere apology-which she had given years ago multiple times as she personally cleaned up Lex’s mess.

And  _ Kara _ .

Lena let her hands wander in her shower after she got home from her panicked car ride. She was only human after all.

* * *

After a few days of waffling and more slightly guilty moments of release late at night, Lena texted Kara. She reasoned that even if Kara changed her mind, she could still go to the remaining few class sessions. Unless Kara didn’t want her there either. Well. Lena could always rearrange training with her previous instructors and try to block the sting of rejection. It wouldn’t be the first time she would have had to do that. She glanced at her phone next to her keyboard, pinning a new stack of documents pertaining to the synthesis of a new Alzheimer’s treatment to the surface. Her screen was still lit with her new text message.

_ If my last name hasn’t chased you away, are you free any time this weekend? _

Lena huffed at herself and pulled up some more financial spreadsheets on her screen as her phone dimmed, feeling more than a little ridiculous. Before she could actually start getting back into her work, her phone lit up again and bumped quietly at her that Kara had responded. She scooped her phone up hastily, eyes flying across the screen as she slumped in relief.

_ Hi! I’m free all day Saturday! Just text me the time and place and I’ll be there. Super excited! _

Lena huffed a quiet laugh.

Of  _ course _ she would say that.

* * *

Lena felt her nerves ratchet up into overdrive when Kara texted her that she was in the lobby. She adjusted the hem of her shirt as she buzzed Kara up, telling her which floor to head to while trying to stamp down more unprofessional thoughts. This was  _ only _ a training session. With Kara.

Alone.

She squared her shoulders tried again to recenter herself. It was  _ only _ Kara.

Lena quickly made her way out of her penthouse to the front foyer and veered off to the private stairwell. She went down one floor to the personal gym she had splurged on when she first moved to National City and flipped the lights on. It was as large as her apartment above her, with a full bathroom, sauna, weight area, multiple machines, and a large open area. There was even a small indoor swim current pool in the back. She had gotten the main space cleaned the day after she had texted Kara and the floor mats still smelled like disinfectant. But it was hers and Lena often found herself down here on the stationary bike if she couldn’t sleep. She was busying herself with straightening some of the free weights up when the door at the far end of the wide room opened up.

“Hello?”

Kara stepped in, wide eyed and a little slack jawed. She was in sleek leggings again and her well-loved National City University pullover hid the shape of her torso. The fluorescent lights glinted off her tortoise shell glasses and today she had a purple scrunchy. Lena waved and Kara spotted her with a grin and began jogging over.

“Is this all yours?”

“It is. It’s usually just me, so it’s nice to have some company today.”

“I’m honored.” Kara volleyed as she drew up in front of Lena. “This is a really cool place.”

Lena’s face warmed at the compliment and she shrugged. Kara fiddled with the hem of her sweatshirt before tugging it off in a single smooth motion. Lena was proud of herself for not looking at the unnecessary amount of smooth tanned skin as her tank top rode up.

“Wanna get started?”

“Yes.”

They warmed up with cardio and stretching, then because the equipment was available Kara led them through some light free weights. Just enough to really get them loose. Throughout the entire first half hour, Lena couldn’t help but notice that Kara looked like she wasn’t even breaking a sweat. Like usual. She wasn’t  _ really _ out of breath though she tried to make it sound like she was. And Lena could tell that Kara was trying very hard to be The Professional Personal Trainer, checking her form and keeping close track of her reps and how she was feeling while still trying to push her. Lena definitely appreciated it because the weird lurch and coil in her abdomen were simmering just under the surface and chipping away at her focus.

“I thought we could work on some of those forms from last class to start with. They were pretty challenging for you but you were getting the hang of them by the end!”

Lena racked her dumbbells and wiped her face off on her towel. She agreed with a nod of her head and followed Kara to the closest mat after a few hasty mouthfuls of water. The energy thrumming through her body kicked into a jittery state and she found herself bouncing around the mat as Kara walked out to the center. Kara smiled at her supposed enthusiasm and settled into an aggressive stance. She waited until Lena had settled and was waiting for her to advance before leaping into motion with a wide grin.

The following twenty-five minutes was an endless stream of Lena getting her ass handed to her.

They went over the tough grapples like Kara had said they would, and Lena found herself more and more frustrated as the minutes glacially crept by. Frustrated that she couldn’t get free. Frustrated that no matter what Kara tried to teach her she was having  _ a time _ . Frustrated about how  _ strong _ Kara was in comparison to her. Frustrated that her blood sang in her veins every time Kara touched her. Enough for her to try the bold maneuver she has managed to pull off in their last class again just to try to get some breathing room.

Her back hit the mat with more force than she had expected and her breath caught in her chest. Kara hovered over her, using Lena’s leg still thrown over her shoulder to rock her up onto the back of her neck into an awkward and unbalanced position. Her glasses had slid down her nose and the look she was giving Lena was one of neutral amusement.

“I’m starting to think that’s your favorite take down maneuver.”

Lena frowned with her chin jammed into her chest, beating back the observation that she liked how her thigh looked on Kara’s broad shoulder. “I’m partial to it.”

Kara laughed and extricated herself. “Try again.”

Lena rolled up onto her knees and took a steadying breath, mentally cycling through the past couple minutes. Surely there was a trick to getting out of the holds Kara kept putting her in? It didn’t make sense. If it was Querl or even her Seal instructor, she had a fair chance of at least landing a blow. But with Kara she was immobilized. Well. Not completely? She was just  _ fast _ . Lena  _ could _ get away from her, as she found out in her last class, but she had only managed to do so by trying to be faster than Kara. Lena sighed and got to her feet. She resolved herself to the fact that she would just have to be as quick as she could.

Lena failed to be as quick as she could.

In fact, she found herself pinned on her back again and again and her nerves wearing thin. She couldn’t get completely feel from Kara. It was like struggling against a two-armed octopus. Her breath whooshed from her lungs as Kara flipped her over her shoulders and dropped her into the mat in yet another grapple, her hands pinned to the mat above her head. She could tell that Kara wasn’t impressed with her most recent attempt, and Lena wasn’t either. It had been sloppy and she was starting to get more than a little huffy. Her gripe was out of her mouth before she could stop it as she tried to twist her hips to bring a knee up into Kara’s gut. Which she also failed to do when Kara changed her grapple to counter her.

“This isn’t punishment for what my brother did to your cousin, is it? Because if it is, I can  _ assure _ you the worst thing I’ve done is let myself be led into a false hope from him and the guilt is  _ still _ insurmountable”.

Kara froze. Her face was twisted in a mix of shock and mild panic and she was  _ desperately _ trying to hide it from Lena. She didn’t know if she had overstepped, and maybe she had, but Kara had quit moving and Lena was able to bring her unpinned knee up and in between them. She pushed against her chest. Kara didn’t move. Lena huffed in annoyance and tried to twist again, continuing to grumble. To hell with it now, the cat was out of the bag and Lena was too annoyed with her performance and the obnoxious coiling attraction in her belly.

“Believe me, I have tried to clean up after him but I’m  _ not _ his keeper. He’s a murderous psychopath and I wish I didn’t share his genes. Fucking  _ hell _ Kara, how am I supposed to learn to escape if you  _ won’t let me? _ ”

The grip pinning her wrists relaxed and Kara’s face was pulled in an odd shocked expression when she realized that Lena may have put two and two together, but that… it wasn’t a big deal? She let Lena move her with her knee.

“You aren’t your brother, Lena.”

The comment caught her off guard and Kara was standing up, leaving her sprawled clumsily on the mat. For a split second Lena thought that she had touched a nerve and Kara would run. Thought that she’d leave her laying there and then later send some black ops goons to make her sign a stack of legal documents as tall as she was. Leave and then never speak to her again like almost everyone else in her life.

A steady reached down towards her.

“Try again.”

A weird swirl of emotions twisted up in her chest and Lena took her hand. Kara scrunched her nose up to adjust her glasses and took a few steps back. She let Lena catch her breath, and then she was moving. Again and again Kara continued to lead Lena through multiple holds and positions, but she still wasn’t any easier on her. And Lena was starting to get tired. When she  _ would _ get a burst of energy, Lena would more often than not find her world flipping and her back thudding into the mat. Her frustration was back, but it was starting to bleed into the attraction that she had been fighting against. It didn’t help that some of the pins had one of Kara’s thighs pressed tightly in between her own legs. Or her hips. Or that she really liked how Kara felt on top of her. That  _ close _ . Maybe she was trying to goad her into pinning her now because the last time she had her thigh had maybe felt a little too good, starting a heady heat low in her hips. It was how she found herself on her back again, Kara pinning her to the mat similarly to how she had in their previous class. She was leaning over Lena, flushed and pink in the face and Lena  _ knew _ is wasn’t because of physical exertion. Her heart leapt into her throat as blue eyes, darkened from widened pupils and the unmistakable haze of attraction darted to her lips.

“What if I was Supergirl?”

Kara breathed her question into the small space in between them. She was looking for clarity. For Lena’s acceptance. It was hard for Lena to pay attention to that when they were slotted together like puzzle pieces and a firm thigh was pressed into her clit. The pressure made her squirm, masked as an attempt to get free, but it was a mistake and a quick zip of pleasure rocketed up her spine. She pressed her lips together when she felt herself get a little slicker. Lena breathed for a moment and prayed to any god listening that she wouldn’t seep through her underwear and pants.

“Well that would explain why I can’t fucking pin you.”

Kara blushed.

“I feel like you want me to pin you.”

She was close.

Closer than Lena had realized and she could smell her shampoo as her ponytail of wavy curls slid over her shoulder. The grip pinning her wrists to the mat above her head loosened. Lena relaxed her fists and her heart thundered in her ribs when Kara slid her hands up to lace her fingers through hers. It brought her closer, pressed more tightly in between her legs and Lena’s breath hitched in her chest. Her hips shifted minutely, but with the way Kara’s freckled cheeks warmed she knew she had felt it.

“Maybe I want you to do more than that.”

It was a blatant invitation.

“I don’t know you that well.” But Kara was already closing the distance.

“That can be rectified-”

Kara’s lips were pressed against hers before she could finish her sentence and Lena melted into her. A wave of relief washed through her as the tightening screw of anticipation finally loosened between them. Lena gladly let her more base urges finally take the lead and she found herself in a handsy tangle of limbs as Kara slowly ground her thigh into the apex between her legs. Each repetition made heat blossom out in a coiling spiral from her hips to the tips of her fingers and toes. Curious hands explored underneath her damp racerback and Lena was enjoying mapping out Kara’s back and mouth with her hands and tongue. Kara was warm and so solid against her and she was overwhelmed with the base need to get even closer.

It was sloppy and rushed and Lena didn’t  _ care _ about the current implications of the youngest Luthor letting a Super get into her pants, she just wanted to keep feeling what she was feeling. She hoped that Kara was feeling the same way. The details of  _ whatever _ this was that was happening between them could be figured out later after the itch had been scratched. Lena pulled Kara’s tank top up and over her shoulders.

“Kara,  _ please- _ ”

Kara let her pull her shirt off of her and Lena smoothed her hands greedily up her bare back, tracing along the band of her sports bra. Her exploration was paused as Kara helped her shuck her own shirt, and then her breath was washing over her as perfect white teeth grazed down the side of her neck. Long fingers splayed greedily over her breasts, tracing lightly over the raised peaks of her nipples pressing through the fabric. Lena whined and rolled her hips into Kara’s thigh, searching for the friction she wanted.

“My hands aren’t clean.” Kara mouthed into the crook of her neck, her voice low and rough with arousal, thumbs swiping heavily across her nipples.

“Then  _ make them clean. _ ” Lena hissed with another roll of her hips.

Kara huffed against her and picked her head up. She whipped her glasses off and squinted towards the bathroom, and then carefully disentangled herself from Lena. She stumbled, and then stepped, vanishing in front of Lena’s eyes with a rush of wind. Lena gaped in amazement, more surprised than anything that she had actually be  _ right _ . She was so caught up in the sudden excited reaction that  _ Oh my GOD Kara IS Supergirl _ that she didn’t here the running water, and then Kara was back above her shaking the water off her hands. Lena reached up for her and Kara was kissing her again, hot and greedy as her damp fingers tugged down the waistband of her leggings and underwear just far enough to fit her hand.

Long slender fingers pressed flat to her abdomen and then slid down, fumbling a little over her as she felt blindly. Lena reached down and guided her hand lower, gasping into Kara’s lips as her fingers brushed over her clit. Fire raced across her skin and she couldn’t help but roll her hips up into Kara’s hand. She moaned softly as long fingers slid through her slickly, feeling her out and starting a slow circle over her clit. Each pass made sparks jolt into her belly and Lena could have cried at the relief, licking into Kara’s mouth as she tried to pull her closer. And then a long finger was pressing into her, gentle and slow, rubbing against her as her thumb swiped across her slit clit. 

“ _ Fuck, please just fuck me.” _

Kara kissed her again, pressing two fingers into her. Lena moaned breathlessly at the hot aching stretch coaxed by Kara’s digits, her body going slack as she raised her hips up and into Kara. It had been  _ too long _ and it felt  _ exquisite _ . She slid her fingers out with a subtle curl, and then back in with another swipe of her thumb. 

_ “You feel so good, Lena _ .”

It was the last thing Kara said as she began to set an earnest pace with her hand. In a word, she was  _ thorough _ . Doing whatever Lena wanted and doing it eagerly. Each thrust of her fingers drew crackling lightning from slick delicious friction. Each massage of the pad of her thumb over the sensitive bundle of nerves at the top of her sex made her hips jump and her stomach swoop. The encroaching tide of release was a heavy coil twisting tighter and tighter with every touch of Kara’s hand between her legs. It wasn’t until she felt her carefully rolling her own hips against Lena’s thigh that she managed to convince herself to free a hand from it’s hold on the back of her broad shoulder.

Somehow, Lena managed to worm her hand down the front of Kara’s form fitting pants with a mumbled  _ come closer _ , grinning triumphantly against her mouth as her lips parted in a gasp when she managed to locate her clit. Kara’s underwear was a  _ mess _ and Lena had no problem setting a quick pace with her slick fingers. She was far less worried about clean hands at the moment, and she was sure Kara wouldn’t care either. She could clean her up later. Kara sagged against her with a moan high in her chest, but she valiantly kept her own fingers moving inside Lena. Their coupling dissolved into the base need to selfishly feel  _ good _ and it doesn’t take much longer until they’re panting and tensing against each other.

Lena felt entirely too tightly wound as her world boiled down to the intense stretch and dragging pull of pleasure from Kara’s hand working in between her legs. She was hot and sticky and sweaty and  _ heaven help her _ she was ready to feel like this all the time. Lena could feel herself teetering just on the edge, her breath catching shallowly in her chest. The muscles in her forearm burned as the pitch in Kara’s moans rose with each exhale. There was a roar in Lena’s ears and the unbearably tight knot in her belly slipped loose. White stars sparkled across Lena’s vision when she squeezed her eyes shut, her mind going blank as she came  _ hard _ around Kara’s fingers with a soft cry. She drifted suspended in a hazy high of pleasure, pulsing hot and wet around Kara as her breath froze in her chest. Kara whined helplessly against her mouth and her hips stuttered into Kara’s hands, her clit firm and hot against her fingers.

Lena remembered to breathe.

“ _ FUCK. Kara- _ ”

Kara kissed her languidly, licking into her mouth and slowing the roll of her hips and hand to a sedate speed. Lena could only pant into her mouth and kiss her back, feeling giddy and jittery and still too turned on to have much higher cognitive thought. She felt Kara mumbling something against her but was still too preoccupied with the long sticky fingers smoothing through slick folds in a soothing rhythm, like she couldn’t stop touching her.

“What?”

“Can I take you on a date?” Kara repeated, levering herself up onto her free elbow, looking absolutely wrecked. Her fingers slid through Lena again and teased at dipping into her.

Lena grinned and rolled her fingers over her clit again. Kara’s brow furrowed and her mouth fell open in soft gasp.

“Come upstairs first? So we can get better acquainted.”

Kara’s  _ yes _ was lost against Lena’s mouth as they fell into each other again.

* * *

  
  
Lena became  _ very _ well acquainted with Kara for the rest of the day.


	22. Car Wash Song

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *clap clapclapclap clap*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: CatCo employees decide to set up a charity fundraising car wash (for whatever reason) and of course Lena decides to go check it out and offer support, but when she gets there she’s struck dumb by the sight of Kara in a crop top (with a whole lot of Ab on display) and short shorts (with a whole lost of toned thigh)
> 
> *your required homework to read this is to also go listen to the Car Wash Song by Rose Royce pls and thank u

It was ludicrous, really.

Right out of a Hollywood blockbuster aimed at teens pumped too full of hormones.

Lena pulled up into the queue of cars waiting to be serviced in Catco’s annual fundraiser car wash. She didn’t remember exactly what they were raising money for this year, but it had been all of the hullabaloo for the past month and she had gotten  _ so sick _ of hearing about it she felt compelled to make a supportive appearance. 

Plus Kara had asked her to come and how could she say no to her best friend?

It was a bright sunny day in mid September, still hot enough for the spectacle in front of her.

_ Skin _ .

There was so much skin.

_ Everywhere _ .

There were roving groups of her employees decked out in their bathing suits and festive pool party wear showing  _ entirely _ too much skin. Lena groaned to herself and couldn’t help but plaintively wonder what she had gotten herself into. The sound of footsteps approaching drew her attention and Lena looked up.

Her superior genius level brain... screeched to a halt.

Kara.

Kara in a crop top.

In a crop top roughly cut from a white CatCo Car Wash t-shirt. In some of the tiniest jean short cutoffs she had  _ ever _ seen. In white and rainbow stripped socks tugged high to her knees and disappearing into a pair of soggy pink converse.

Kara showing  _ too much skin _ as her high, preppy ponytail of bright golden curls bounced in her wake.

Lena knew Kara was attractive. Hell she even had a little bit of a crush on her best friend. It was something she could live with. But  _ Kara _ in a  _ crop top _ and a  _ poor _ excuse for shorts. Lena bit back a whimper. Maybe this  _ was _ a mistake.  _ Maybe _ if she hadn’t been gawking she would have seen the smug grin stretch across Nia’s face from a few yards away.

“Hi!! You made it!!”

Lena tugged a genuine smile onto her face as Kara adjusted her tortoise shell glasses up her nose with a scrunchy grin as she sauntered up to Lena’s car.

“Just barely, I had a conference call run over.”

“But it’s  _ Saturday _ .” Kara answered in mock horror.

Lena could only sigh and shifted in her seat to hook her elbow out the window. She could feel the deep rumbling hum of the engine through the door and the soft leather seat.

“No rest for the wicked, I’m afraid.”

“Have you been waiting to use that line? Because it fits the car.” Kara rolled her eyes in humor.

Lena quirked a brow and hooked her other wrist over the polished steering wheel, glancing around the gleaming interior of her deep emerald ‘65 Fastback Shelby. The sun reflected brightly off of the wide white double stripe on the hood.

“I may have kept a few of Lex’s less-deadly toys.”

“Does it  _ at least _ come with a seatbelt?”

Lena rolled her eyes. “ _ Yes _ , I just took it off when I pulled in.”

Kara hummed and pressed her lips together, the crinkle forming between her brows. Lena reached over and waggled the nylon strap at her in a  _ see? _

“You worry me too much for my own good.”

“And who’s fault it that?” Lena grinned and revved the engine just to get a reaction.

“ _ Oh my god _ are you a  _ boy _ .” Kara huffed and stepped back. “There’s a free station on the end there next to the picnic tables, I’ll follow you over.”

“Thank you, Miss Danvers.”

Kara shook her head with a poorly hidden grin and started walking in the direction of the open station. The engine rumbled, pleasingly low and bold as she shifted into first, the heavy tires crunching across the pavement as she rolled after her. Lena may have let her eyes follow the sway of Kara’s hips, the sleek flex and pull of the muscles in her toned thighs when she observed just how short her shorts  _ really _ were. She raised a hand in greeting at Nia as she pulled into the space, cutting the engine when one of the men she recognized from the fashion editorials waved her to a stop. Lena had to pause and eye the sleek plane of his abs before leaning across the passenger seat to crank the passenger window up, but remembered he had a husband and looked away. Lena wondered who signed off on this.

( _ She had signed off on it _ .)

Lena straightened up in her seat and spun the crank for her own window, shooting Kara another smile as the glass rose. Kara was in the middle of returning her smile and stepping up to Lena’s door when a double stream of water hit her in the face and chest. Lena heard her screech through the window as she held her arms up to shield her face. Nia’s loud laughter erupted from the other side of the car. The water petered off, hitting the windshield in a series of staccato beats. Kara’s mouth was hanging open in a scandalized  _ oh _ as she glared across the roof of Lena’s car at Nia. Her front was  _ soaked _ . And she was so close to the car that she could see  _ everything. _

_ Everything. _

Lena could only stare, her mouth falling open more and more the longer she stared at Kara.

The white crop top was translucent, plastered wetly to her chest. Lena could clearly see the outline of Kara’s floral bikini top through the fabric, and she nearly swallowed her tongue when she noticed that her nipples were pebbled and visible through the wet clothing. Heat flooded through her body and crawled up her neck to her warm face. She tried to drag her eyes away, but all she managed to do was follow the water dripping down the firm plane of her stomach. She was close enough to watch it track down and through the soft pale baby hairs of her abdomen and soak into the waistband of her cutoffs. She swallowed thickly as Kara’s toned stomach curved in on itself, her back arching out as long fingers plucked the crop top away from her chest.

“ _ What the hell, Nia?” _

Kara turned away from the car, tugging the wet shirt up and over her head to wring out. Lena came face to face with her flustered reflection, mouth ajar and pupils blown wide. The image finally shook her from the elevator music on loop in her head and she jammed her aviators onto her face. She nearly tripped getting out of her car when a still-damp Kara walked back over to her, the tight bikini top  _ really _ not leaving anything to her imagination.

“Well, that was-hey, are you okay?” Kara stepped close, holding her hands out as if she was ready to catch her.

“I’m fine.”

Her reply came out a little higher pitched than she meant it to. Lena cleared her throat and tried again.

“I’m fine, my foot caught.”

The crinkle between Kara’s brow formed again and her fingers brushed Lena’s elbow. “You sure?”

Sparks skittered out under her skin from the point of contact and Lena carefully stepped around her with a placating smile that felt too forced. Kara was her  _ friend _ , and she didn’t trust her own hands at the moment.

“Yes, I’m fine. I’ll wait over here.”

Lena strode away towards the fundraising table, the weight of Kara’s worried gaze on her back. As she passed by Nia, she paused.

“ _ I hope you’re proud of yourself _ .” She muttered.

Nia’s shit eating grin grew wider. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Miss Luthor.”

Lena  _ hmmd _ quietly at her bold attitude and walked on, tugging her checkbook from her purse. She quickly donated a generous amount to the car wash and found a seat to answer emails on her phone. She lasted all of five minutes before her attention was drawn back to Kara. Back to the endless amount of smooth tanned skin and sleek toned limbs.

She  _ knew _ she loved Kara.  _ Deeply _ so. There was no question about that.

They had come through the mess of the Supergirl reveal wounded and raw, but still embedded deeply in each other’s hearts. Lena had nearly let herself lose Kara, but had managed to claw her way back to her. It had hurt. And she had felt broken for a long time. But with a lot of work she stitched herself back together at the seams, leaving a loop open for Kara. Kara who had wormed her way back into her heart and filled the cracks in her chest until she felt whole again. Lena knew she had done the same for her, and it had just drawn them even closer than before. Glued to the hip at game nights. Texts throughout the day. A shared meal or coffee break a couple times a week if not every day.

But now  _ this _ .

That minute crush that Lena had on her? The scene in front of her certainly wasn’t helping it. At  _ all _ .

Heady attraction had completely distracted her from the task at hand, obliterated by the flex and pull of the muscles in Kara’s arms as she scrubbed soapy circles across the windshield of Lena’s car. She was entranced by the way the sunlight shifted over her broad shoulders, the steady  _ swish swish _ of the oversized yellow sponge encouraging her mind to wander to a different repetitive motion, one that she hadn’t paired with Kara in her mind yet. A different motion that had the sudden image of bare skin and rolling hips flooding her mind-

Lena nearly fell out of her seat from physically rearing her head back as a surge of heat coiled heavy and low in her hips, a betraying slickness coming with it. Her heartbeat throbbed in more inappropriate places and she quickly busied herself with her phone when Kara looked up in concern. She put her head down, forcing her expression as blank as possible, intent on giving the illusion that she hadn’t just thought about fucking her best friend.

By some stroke of luck, Kara didn’t come check on her. Lena still didn’t get any work done for the rest of her time there, but she also succeeded in dialing back her racier thoughts. Instead she took the time to start reflecting on her feelings toward Kara, and was successfully circle-talking herself on how to best  _ address _ the possibility that her crush was a bit stronger than she originally thought when the very woman walked back up to her. She was still in her bikini top, the soaked crop top nowhere to be found.  _ Heaven help her. _

“All done!”

“That was fast, thank you.” Lena rose and fished her keys out of her bag.

Kara walked her back over to her car with a sunny grin.

“I  _ am _ glad you were able to come.”

Lena’s brain turned into a teenager’s and nearly got hung up on the word  _ come _ .

“Me too. Let me know how the rest of the day goes?”

Kara popped the door open for her with a half shrug.

“If you aren’t busy tonight, I could tell you over pizza?”

Lena  _ thought _ it was an innocent request.

She realized it wasn’t when she turned back to Kara and caught her looking somewhere below her chin. Somewhere around the low cut of her top. Another new development. A welcome one, Lena decided with a pleasantly pleased swoop of her belly. Her day was just  _ full _ of those.

“I think I’d like to talk to you about something.” She continued, a blush warming her tanned freckled face.

Lena’s heart jumped into her throat. “Oh? Is it bad?”

The emotions played out visibly on Kara’s face. Fear. Apprehension. Hope. Attraction.

_ Want _ .

She stepped closer into Lena’s space. But not too close. Just enough that Lena could imagine feeling the heat of her body.

“ _ I saw you watching me. Can we talk about that?” _

Lena felt like her head was made of a bowl of scrambled jello. She nodded carefully.

“I’d like that.”

Kara grinned again and her eyes dipped to Lena’s lips. She stepped back.

“I’ll text you later?”

Lena felt like she could breathe again and inhaled deeply, relishing the stretch and pull in her chest before slipping into her seat.

“Yes, please.”

Kara kept grinning and let go of her door. “Cool. I’ll see you soon!”

“Yes, see you soon.”

The engine roared to life at her touch and Lena gave her one last smile before shifting into gear and rolling out of her station. She made sure to fasten her seatbelt before getting back on the road, tanned skin and a sunny smile filling her thoughts. And her mind repeating the word,

  
_ Pizza _ .


	23. Practice Makes...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Kara is afraid of hurting someone by kissing them so Lena offers to help her practice. While hesitant at first, Kara eventually agrees. But it’s 100% platonic. Right?

“I don’t even know why I brought it up, just-“ Kara waved her hand nonchalantly in front of her and sank deeper into the couch, willing herself not to burn to a crisp in embarrassment.

“Don’t worry about it.”

“You certainly seem to be.” Lena interjected as concern seeped into her soft smile.

Kara shrugged. “I’ve told you about how I broke my first boyfriend’s nose, right? At least once.”

“You have.” Lena supplied graciously, balancing her tumbler of single malt on her knee.

“Then you know I’d really not like to repeat that.”

“Your control is much better than it used to be.”

Kara sank further into the couch with a frown. “Yeah, yeah… you’ve said that before.”

“Am I wrong?”

“No…”

She spun her wine glass idly between her fingers. The deep burgundy wine did nothing for her, but she liked the taste and she liked how something so simple and delicate could be elegant. Beautiful in a certain light. Kind of like how Lena was looking at her right now.

“I just don’t want to hurt anyone. I… I hurt other people all the time as Supergirl, even if I’m careful. And I  _ know, _ I know, that’s sometimes just part of the job. But. The punching gets tedious and-and sometimes I just wish people weren’t so ugly to each other.”

Kara sat up and downed her wine glass. “Sometimes I just wish I didn’t have to punch anymore. Much less break someone’s nose trying to kiss them.”

The wine glass made a quiet ringing chime as she set it back onto the coffee table. Lena was quiet for a moment but the steady tapping of her finger on her tumbler was Kara’s only indication that she was still present and thinking hard.

“So, get some practice.”

Kara snorted at the suggestion, turning back into the couch to face Lena. “Sure. Who should I ask? You?”

“Why not? You trust me, and I have access to a reputable plastic surgeon should things go awry. You also wouldn’t have to come out to someone new about your other job if you  _ did _ break someone else’s nose. It would of course be completely platonic.”

“ _ What _ - _ pft _ . Lena. Come on.” Kara snorted a laugh, feeling her face warm. “We aren’t kids.”

Kara held her ground under Lena’s calculating gaze. Her bright green eyes were carefully calculating, cataloguing each little fidget she made. Kara felt naked under the weight of her attention.

“Are you really so afraid, Kara?”

“I-no. No.”

Lena blinked slowly, her face blatantly showing her skepticism.

“...yes.”

Lena watched her for another long moment. Kara could tell she was mulling something over, and she was almost ready to hop up from the couch when she leaned over and set her tumbler on the coffee table.

“Can I try something?” Lena asked lightly, shifting up onto her knees and shuffling down the couch to Kara.

The sound of her pencil skirt rustling was deafening to Kara as she pressed back into the corner of the couch. Lena crept forward until she settled again, her knees a few inches away from Kara’s thigh. She propped her elbow up on the back of the couch and waited.

“Oh.” Kara realized she was waiting on her to answer. “I-uh-what are you planning?”

“To help you practice.”

Kara’s face felt like it was on fire. Her? Kiss  _ Lena? _ Her best friend and probably one of the prettiest and most available women on the West Coast?

“Lena-”

“Kara.”

She closed her mouth with an audible click of her teeth. Lena’s eyes were open and trusting, still tinged with concern but wanting to help her.

“Yes, or no.”

Kara brain did a funny little short circuit.

“Nyes.”

Lena laughed and leaned away. “Alright. Let me know if you change your mind.”

Kara’s brain started again.

“Yes.”

Lena leaned heavily into the couch, her brow furrowing slightly as a placating smile tugged at the corner of her deep red lips. “Don’t let me pressure you-”

“Please. I  _ do _ trust you.” Kara didn’t know what she was saying, but her heart felt like a hummingbird in her chest. “Yes. Please.”

Silence spanned between them for an achingly long moment. Lena shifted towards her again.

“Are you more afraid of initiating a kiss? Or meeting someone in one?”

Kara swallowed thickly, trying to find a spot on Lena’s face to focus on. “Yes.”

“And being kissed isn’t an issue.”

She was so  _ close _ . Kara could smell her perfume. She could feel the heat of her body as she braced her elbow on the back of the couch and leaned over her.

“No, not at all.”

“So let’s try this. I’ll kiss you, and then you kiss me. Okay? And if that goes well, we both try at the same time.”

Kara almost laughed with the Business Tone Lena was employing, but she didn’t. She knew she was trying to be helpful.

“Okay.”

Lena smiled, and then Kara felt her fingers brush against her chin. “Hold still.”

Kara could smell the sharp peaty single malt on her breath, and couldn’t help her quick inhale when impossibly soft lips pressed against hers in a gentle kiss. Her hands reached blindly and found Lena’s elbow. It was over before she knew it and Lena was hovering over her again.

“Your turn.”

Kara breathed for a moment, her brain whirling. It was only Lena. She wouldn’t hurt Lena. Good, kind, patient Lena who was watching her for the next move. Kara leaned up and pressed a kiss to her mouth, her nose brushing against her cheek as her face warmed from the returned pressure. It lasted a little longer than the first kiss and Kara carefully leaned back, relief flooding through her chest. She  _ did _ it.

But only for a moment and then Lena was pulling her in again, a curious look in her eyes as this time they shared a kiss. Their noses bumped awkwardly and Kara could feel Lena smiling against her. She tilted her head and then-

Lena was drawing back, a light blush high on her cheekbones.

“Oh-you took some of my color.”

Kara was overcome with the urge to kiss her again as Lena reached for a napkin. “Wait-”

Lena paused. Kara’s brain caught up with her mouth. Lena  _ said _ it was completely platonic.

“Will you help me practice some more?”

Green eyes dipped back down to her mouth. “Right now? Or…?”

“It doesn’t have to be right now.” She back pedaled. “It could be whenever. Or like. Not at all.”

Lena watched her for another long moment and then leaned back in, pressing a chaste kiss to the corner of her mouth.

“How about we go get something to eat first? My treat? And then we can talk about practicing.”

Lena rose gracefully from the couch and scooped up their glasses.

“Make sure you clean my lipstick off before we leave.”

Kara was already thinking about what other colors of lipstick Lena had.


	24. A Home Cooked Meal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: kara wants to share all her favorite things w/ Lena, including her favorite extra-terrestrial cuisine, so she starts cooking alien dishes for her and when Lena asks where they're from she says they're eastern european and thinks she's being an awesome liar

“Remind me what you’re making again?”

Kara paused, her hand hovering in front of the unmarked spices on her shelf.

“Umm, I thought I told you?”

“I never heard exactly what it was.”

“Oh. Um. It’s European. Perk of helping little old ladies in Southern France.”

She selected a small bottle and popped the lid. The tangy sharp spice wafted up to her and she capped it again with a muttered  _ wrong one _ to herself.

“You know,  _ labelling _ your spices is the smart thing to do.”

Kara picked up another bottle and opened it, a pungent earthy scent that reminded her of a late summer evening drifted to her. She measured out a teaspoon and dumped it into the simmering saucepan.

“Well  _ yeah _ , but the little old ladies didn’t teach me that way.”

“Oh, so you’re going by taste?”

Kara heard her take a sip of her drink behind her as she stirred in her most recent spice. “And smell. I do better with smell.”

“Even better than your super hearing?”

“I feel like you’re teasing me.”

“Not intentionally.”

The spoon clattered into the spoon rest and Kara spun with her hands on her hips. Lena was grinning at her from the high kitchen table, still in her work clothes from a long day at L-Corp. The hazy memory of her and Lena in a more compromising position from the following weekend made her comments about senses… make sense. Kara blushed, heat curling low in her belly.

“You  _ were _ teasing me.”

Lena winked and raised her wine glass in a  _ cheers, _ while she pointed with the same hand to the stove.

“And  _ that _ doesn’t smell very  _ French _ .”

Kara looked back over to the saucepan. It was an interesting violet hue. She put the lid on it. Technically she  _ had _ picked the recipe up from a little elderly woman in Southern France. And  _ technically _ that little elderly woman wasn’t human.

“Sure it is.”

Lena sighed. “I trust that everything will be cooked properly?”

Kara wheeled back around and shot Lena an insincere annoyed look. “Rude.”

Lena quirked a brow at her skeptically and took a sip of her wine. Kara threw her hands up and let them slap down against her thighs.

“It was  _ one time _ .”

“And I ended up having to hold your hair back for an entire evening, and  _ not _ in the way that I would have liked.”

Kara blushed deeper and turned back to the stove, trying to ignore the heavy stare she could feel on her back. She had dinner to cook. “You’re incorrigible.”

“Says the woman who wouldn’t let me go to sleep last Saturday.”

“Okay, you know what-” Kara took the pan off the heat and turned off the burners. She wheeled around and shucked her apron, eyes locked on her smug girlfriend.

Kara rounded the table, took Lena’s glass from her hand, and then scooped her up and over her shoulder.

“I’ll show  _ you _ incorrigible.”

Lena’s delighted laughter chased after them into the dim bedroom.


	25. Try These On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Lena having a big thing for glasses and buying Kara new frames she wants to see on her all the time

“Here, try these on.”

“I-buh- _ Lena- _ ”

Kara juggled the other four pairs of trendy frames as Lena shoved another pair into her hands. But she did as she was told and slipped the fifth pair off of her face to try on the newest pair Lena was holding under her nose. They were the aviator style that Alex favored and Kara thought they were a little too big for her face. Lena looked up from the other pairs she had set out on the high bar in the upscale boutique she had drug her into, her brow arched dangerously. A thrill went down Kara’s spine and she eeked out an  _ okay _ and slid them onto her face. Lena cocked her head to the side for a moment, and then scrunched her nose in displeasure as she turned her attention back to the other frames.

“No, take those off.”

Kara suppressed a sigh and mouthed a  _ thank you _ to one of the attendants who graciously took back the precarious balanced of rejected frames in her hands. He humored her with a good natured eye roll while his back was to Lena, clearly knowing exactly what she was going through. Kara bit back her answering grin and let Lena push another pair of frames into her hands. These were a little larger than the previous ones but a more round shape, giving Kara the impression that they would make her look softly studious. Lena tilted her head to the other side and her brow furrowed for a long moment.

“Actually, let me see those.”

Kara handed them back over and watched as Lena tried them on herself. She ruffled her hair a little out of the sleek part she had combed it into and pushed her bottom lip out as she studied herself in the mirror. She turned and looked at Kara, whose stomach full of golden butterflies did a flip. At this point in their relationship, their  _ romantic _ relationship, Kara had seen Lena at all stages of casual.  _ All _ stages. The way she looked now, soft and casually comfortable with her bright green eyes watching her from behind the clear glass, made Kara  _ really _ want to kiss her.

“You look like that owl from the tootsie pop commercials and if you don’t get those I will never let you hear the end of it.”

A wicked grin curled the corners of Lena’s deep red lips and Kara knew her life was about to get a little more frustrating.

“Interesting comparison, Miss Danvers. If we find you a pair, then yes. I’ll get these.”

Lena slipped off the frames and fixed her hair. “Good. Now, try these on.”

Kara suddenly really wanted a new pair of glasses frames.

So it went until about sixteen more pairs later, Lena held out a pair of more masculine frames. They were a similar trendy tortoise shell to her current lead-lined frames but thicker with a subtle pattern on the arms. Kara slipped them on and looked at Lena.

Lena’s head tilted again, like she had every time, but there was no displeased scrunch of her nose. She was curiously unreadable, but her hands did the tell tale fidget that she did when she wanted to tough Kara.

“Yes. Those.”

Kara gratefully slipped her old frames back on with a quiet sigh, glad that the onslaught was over for the time being. She slid up to Lena around the high bar top and caught a glimpse at the bill before she swiped her black card through the chip reader.

“ _ Lena _ .” She admonished quietly, trying not to think about how those frames were a month of her rent.

Lena held a hand up in a  _ wait a moment _ gesture and finished checking them out. She didn’t let Kara complain until they were out on the sidewalk in the bright sun again with the promise that their new frames would be ready in a few days.

“Mark it down as a Supergirl expense. Don’t feel bad.”

“But they were  _ expensive _ .”

Lena stopped walking, her grin pulling wolfish as she closed the distance between them.

“Then come over tonight and repay me.”

Kara could feel heat simmering under her skin, pulling in a low heavy coil in her belly. “How?”

“ _ Find out how many licks it takes to get to the center of a tootsie pop. _ ”

Kara’s brain short circuited as Lena strode towards their car with a low laugh.


	26. You and Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit angstier, sorry about that. Promised happy ending but we gotta get there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: kara filling sketchbooks upon sketchbooks with drawings and portraits and dashed-off silhouettes of lena
> 
> I had listened to Disclosure's You & Me before I started writing this and everything spiraled. I'm sorry.

Kara was selfish about her drawings.

They were hers. Personal. A direct reflection of the emotions she so often felt compelled to hide to protect herself and those around her. A part of her from her extinct life on Krypton that she fell into during her darker nights. A self-imposed therapy to keep herself from getting too reckless. It didn’t always curb that sometimes overwhelming urge to help others, but it kept her back from dangerously pushing herself.

Kara had drawn in her spare time at home on krypton on a tablet her father had made for her. It was her way to unwind after a long day of lessons even if Kryptonian culture had since shunned most of the more indulgent arts after the fall of the Golden Age decades before she was created. Even then, her doodles had leaned towards the theories she studied and were never  _ truly _ self indulgent.

That changed when she was trapped in the Phantom Zone. It became a means of survival. Of remembering what she had lost.  _ Who _ she had lost. It was a way to keep herself focused between the long bouts of cryosleep. This time she drew the faces of her peers, her teachers, and her colleagues in the Science Guild. The faces of her parents over and over and over until they were etched so firmly into the muscle memory of her hand they blossomed under her touch. She drew them until it felt like the hole in her chest was  _ maybe _ closing up again. Drew them so many times that just maybe she wouldn’t ever forget what they looked like.

And then she crashed to Earth and everything changed again. Handed off like an unwanted dog by the cousin she had been sent to protect, thrust into a world of strange things and strange customs and even stranger people millennials behind in advancement, shunned by her new peers for how she talked and how she acted. The Danvers were kind and gave her sketchbooks and stacks of paper to draw and paint on. She would paint her frustrations into the flimsy news print with angry dark strokes or fill her sketchbooks to the edge with the anxieties of a preteen in a terrifying new environment. Kara would cake her sorrows into the fibers when sleep wouldn’t come because the human therapist from the DEO told her it was a good outlet. Kara was skeptical.

When Kara was navigating high school her anger diminished even if her feelings of abandonment and survivor’s guilt didn’t. Her paintings turned somber and lonesome, the perpetual ache in her chest bleeding onto the paper. Abstract turned to landscapes and Kara filled her walls with paintings of a home long gone into the black of space. Her relationship with Alex grew stronger and the first sketch she penciled into the new moleskin her adoptive sister got her for her fifth earth birthday was a portrait. It had been the first portrait Kara had drawn since the faces of her parents and she cried for the rest of the evening.

It was difficult to find space to paint in a college dorm room, so Kara filled smaller sketchbooks she could stack up alongside her textbooks. Landscapes turned to portraits of the other students around her and the architecture of National City University. Around her journalism classes and the spare higher level science classes she managed to sneak into with her advisor’s help, Kara didn’t have time to think about taking an art class. She missed the Science Guild and what it stood for and chose physics courses over beginning art courses. She missed the discussions and forums and panels. She missed the practical experiments and the overarching curiosity to learn more simply because there was more to learn. Kara was able to find a modicum of that in those science classes, but what really drew her into journalism was the need to find the truth. There was only so much she could do with particle acceleration before she started treading into dangerous waters of knowing  _ too much _ , but with journalism it was a different kind of knowing. It gave her the opportunity to learn to open up and finally start connecting with other people and their shared experiences. Kara found that she liked it almost as much as science.

Kara’s four years of college blew by in a whirl of papers and stories and a dwindling stack of sketchbooks. With her upper level courses demanding more and more of her time and energy, she found herself tucking her current sketchbook away for weeks at a time. She would paint when she was home in Midvale for the summer, but even that started to fall away when she started taking short internships at the local paper. Kara missed drawing, but she had become invested in journalism.

Her first apartment in National City was Alex’s old apartment. A top floor corner studio on the east side of the city with fixed rent and water included. It had creaky wooden floors and exposed brick walls in between the plastered pillars and Kara loved it. It had character. It had a story to it. During her first night there the familiar aching loneliness crawled back into her chest from the recesses around her heart, onset by homesickness for a place not too far and a place she’d never see again, and Kara found herself digging though her boxes for her paints. She painted into the small hours, beating back the stark feeling of being alone in a city full of people. The vibrant reds of the Fire Falls on Krypton greeted her in the morning, still drying from her last thick brush strokes from not a few hours before.

Kara still painted when she had the time and started carrying a small sketchbook with her to her new job at CatCo Worldwide Media. The hard work and struggle of trying to prove herself as Cat Grant’s new assistant with a bare bones resume was exhausting and left her fingers itching to reach for her sketchbook numerous times during the day. She managed. And then she was wrapped in a blanket with her hair still damp from the shower, feverishly sketching Alex’s face as she looked at her with pride through the window of the plane she had set down in the bay.

Her life became exponentially more hectic with her new role as Supergirl. It was pretty rough at the beginning and she had lost an entire week of free time helping clean up after the tanker she had accidentally torn into. However this new role opened her world up even more. There weren’t just people now, there were aliens. There wasn’t just the landscape from her seat in the park, it was the entire world. Kara started taking her sketchbook out on patrols with one ear to the city around her and the rest of her attention on what (or who) was in front of her. The piles of sketchbooks started growing again as she started fighting the prisoners of Fort Rozz. She went through half of a stack of paper when she lost Aunt Astra. A single page for Jeremiah of one of the best color portraits she had ever created, given to Eliza. She went through another chunk when she and James discovered that it just wasn’t going to work out between them. She stopped drawing for two weeks and cried over her old inexperienced drawings from her time in the Phantom Zone when Zod cruelly thrust her back into a world that didn’t exist under the influence of a Black Mercy. When she was calm enough, Kara painted fresh portraits with the striking resemblance of her family and hung them in her tiny bedroom.

And then, months later, Lena Luthor came to town.

Brilliant, cunning, wickedly smart with a dry sense of humor, and to Kara’s immediate horror also unfairly attractive. After a wild day of two  _ very different _ first meetings, Kara was consumed by an evening of sketching out Lena Luthor’s face from cool and controlled haughty detail to mussed and wild from a near death experience. She was drawn to her like a moth to an open flame and had to forcibly put her pencil down so she wouldn’t draw through the entire night.

Lena Luthor was a magnet.

She was a magnet for trouble, for drama, and for Kara in both her regular and super hero lives. She couldn’t get away from her nor did she  _ want _ to. They built a tentative friendship despite their family differences and Lena quickly became a more permanent fixture in Kara’s life. Permanent enough that the first frenzied night of those first sketches didn’t become an isolated incident. Lena snuck into her sketch books bit by bit as the months passed. From a three-minute gesture while waiting for her to get out of a meeting, to half hour studies that would come to life under her careful hand. Kara didn’t realize until months later, with growing dread as she stood in front of her easel wiping her hands on her paint stained jeans studying a vibrant portrait in gouache… that she was probably falling in love with her.

_ Most definitely _ falling in love with her.

The fallout nearly three years later of a dying Lex exposing her to Lena as Supergirl was devastating. There were no more calls. No more texts. No more lunch or coffee dates. No more greedy hugs or lingering kisses straying too close to the corner of the other’s mouth. No more Lena. All that remained was that familiar aching cold loneliness that Kara was all too familiar with. Now that old feeling was iced over with the new hurt and realization that she may have just lost someone she really cared about. Someone she loved deeply in a way she had never loved someone before. It wasn’t until she cracked open her current sketch book that she realized come completely Lena had consumed her. She was on nearly every page, rendered in various stages from various angles with all kinds of expressions. Kara left the sketch book on her coffee table after paging through and pulled out her previous sketch book.

Lena.

She pulled out the one before that.

Lena again.

Further and further back Kara looked, following the progression of her affection until she found the very first sketches of her, pristine and wild. Kara cradled the book to her chest and cried in front of the stacks of sketch books of just  _ Lena _ .

She put them away.

Kara carefully boxed up all of those sketch books that she had poured her love into and hid them in the back of her closet behind the old coats she rarely wore anymore. She carefully wrapped and tucked the canvas of the gouache portrait in between the wall and the box too, afraid of what she might feel if she kept having to look at it. She lost the urge to draw and fell further and further into her work as a senior writer at CatCo and as Supergirl. Lena had made it clear that she didn’t want to be around her, even in a professional setting. But she was quiet about it, and when questioned by other press simply stated that she and  _ Miss Danvers _ were busy and that was why you hadn’t seen them out together in the tabloids. Each cool brush off felt like a needle in between her ribs.

It was three months later of Lena pushing her away and a nasty attack on L-Corp for the first time in about a year that made everything boil over.

She landed with a heavy thud on the remains of Lena’s balcony, tired and achy and in need of a hug. There had been a series of detonations from inside the building and miraculously the resulting explosions weren’t strong enough to cause any significant structural damage to the skeleton of the skyscraper. One of the explosions had been directly under Lena’s office and had damaged the wide balcony. Lena had somehow managed to come out mostly unscathed thanks to the extra shielding she had discretely installed after a particularly nasty bout against a rocket-propelled grenade. She had a few scrapes and bruises from the force of the explosion itself but Kara had been there in a heart beat, her deep red cape popping and snapping loudly around her body as she screamed through the shattered out glass wall. The echo of her breaking the sound barrier bounced deafeningly off the surrounding buildings and Lena had winced at the sound, her slender hands protecting her head as Kara hovered defensively over her. Her heart had stopped when she had realized where the first explosion had originated and couldn’t get to L-Corp fast enough when it was barely a few seconds.

_ We need to get you out of here _ she had told her, only to rock back on her heels in shock when Lena brushed passed her with barely a glance. She had pulled a pistol from the safe under her fritzed out media set up and stalked back to her desk.

_ “What are you doing, we need to go!” _

_ “I’m securing our servers. I’m sure you’re needed elsewhere.” _

_ “Lena, please. Let me help-” _

_ “If you want to be useful I suggest you leave. And make sure my employees are safe on your way out.” _

The rebuke was a verbal stinging slap to the face and hot boiling anger finally broke through the hopelessness that had encapsulated her heart. Lena hadn’t met her gaze and Kara left before she could say something she would regret. It had taken the better part of two hours, but Kara managed to clear the building and catch the culprits responsible for the attack. A splinter cell of nobodies hired by Myriad meant to destroy key components of L-Corp and take out Lena at the same time. If that extra discreet shielding hadn’t been in place around her office, Lena would have been dead before Kara could have reached her. It was that chilling fact that weaseled into her chest as she crunched over the broken glass still strewn across the floor. Lena was on the opposite side of her desk conversing with an agent from the DEO as a handful of police officers milled about the room. The cut on her forehead had been cleaned and bandaged and her eyes turned flinty when they landed on her.

“Supergirl. Thank you for your assistance but I believe you are no longer needed here.”

It was a dismissal before Kara could even open her mouth and the anger from earlier roared back to life.

“Miss Luthor, if I may have a word with you? It won’t take but a moment.”

She couldn’t help the steel that cut through her tone, strong enough to make a few of the police officers look away. Strong enough to make the DEO agent’s eyes go wide and for Lena to flush with her own anger. She gave the agent a clipped  _ excuse me _ and followed Kara out onto the broken balcony. Their shoes crunched over the glass and Lena crossed her arms protectively in front of her chest. She was dimly lit from the light of her office but Kara could still plainly see the icy displeasure etched into her blank expression.

“What do you want.”

“I know you’re still mad at me but can’t I check in on you? You could have  _ died _ tonight.  _ Would _ have died had the flooring not been reinforced.”

Lena was quiet for a moment, nostrils flaring as her grip tightened on her bicep.

“If that’s all you have to say then I suggest you leave-”

“ _ NO _ . No that it  _ not _ all I have to say! I have so much to say to you and  _ you won’t let me _ . I’m here- I’m here because you’re my friend and I care about you-”

“Keep. Your. Voice down.”

Kara ignored the hissed warning.

“-and I want, no I  _ need _ you to know that I  _ still _ care about you. I’ll give you more time if you want more time but I deserve a chance to explain myself to you.”

“You sure cared about me when you lied to me for three years. Was that not enough of a chance? Do you know what it’s like to have something like that torn away from you? What am I to you, Kara? Your proverbial cash cow for a story?”

Lena was ignoring her own warning now, her voice raising with each sentence, teeth bared as venom dripped from her tongue. She was angry. Bitter. And Kara, the source of the bitterness was right in front of her and she was falling heavily on a Luthor-shaped blade. The remark cut deep and Kara found her voice raw as she yelled back, her chest aching with a sickening oily surge of fury.

“How  _ dare _ you say something like that. I have  _ never _ used you for personal gain. That’s a lie and you  _ know _ it.”

“ _ Is _ it though?”

“It  _ is _ ! You’re one of the most important people  _ in my life _ and I have  _ never _ and  _ will never _ use you. And you’re just so recklessly putting yourself in danger! I’ve lost a  _ world _ of people, Lena. I don’t want you to be included in that world because you have a  _ death wish _ .”

“What’s a world to one person? One more shouldn’t hurt that bad, should it?”

The words were low. Sneered. Meant to cut deep  _ and they did _ . Kara could feel herself deflating, a hole punching through her chest at what Lena was suggesting. She knew her horror and hurt was painted clear as day across her face and she couldn’t muster the strength to hide it.

“ _ That’s not fair _ .”

“The world isn’t  _ fair _ , Kara. You and I both know that.”

“It  _ would _ hurt that bad. I don’t think I would be strong enough if- I know it would hurt worse.”

“Worse? Worse than your entire world? Your parents? Your friends? Worse than losing Krypton?”

“It would!”

“Worse than losing Alex?”

“I don’t know-”

“You don’t  _ know _ ?”

“I don’t know!”

“You  _ should _ know-”

“I know!”

“Then why are you here?”

“Because I care about you so much that-”

“I swear to god, Kara, if you’re going to say you’re in love with me-”

“ _ I AM! _ ”

Kara sucked in a deep breath and held it, realizing what she had just let slip. Dread seeped cold and heavy into her limbs and her heart fluttered painfully in her chest as Lena stared at her in surprise, her mouth ajar and her eyes startled. She was so surprised she didn’t press her with another cutting question and Kara threw caution to the wind.

“I  _ am _ . I care because I’m in love with you. And that’s why I couldn’t find the right time to tell you who I really am. Because I’m selfish and I didn’t want to lose you and it was  _ so easy _ to just be Kara to you. It was just me and you and none of this super hero bullshit. I  _ know _ I should have told you.  _ Years _ ago. But I was afraid and I’m  _ sorry _ . I’m just sorry.”

A long painful moment passed and Lena set her jaw and took a step back. “Well. Do you have any other secrets to tell me, Miss Danvers.”

Kara swore she could see her heart beating weakly on the broken pavement in front of Lena’s feet. She felt like she was swallowing the glass she was standing on.

“No. That’s the last one.”

Lena gave her a once over, her corporate blank expression hastily shrugged back on. She let her hands fall to her side.

“You love me? I’ll believe it when I see it.”

The words were flat and Kara knew that she didn’t believe her. She might have, once upon a time. But not now.

Lena’s heels crunched over the glass as she left Kara on the balcony, a controlled and blasé  _ please excuse the interruption _ another chilly bolt in her chest. But something in her told her to just try, even if nothing came from that. Lena at least deserved to know that Kara was serious in how she felt about her, even if she never spoke to her again. She deserved to know the truth. She deserved to know the truth about everything.

The only sound Kara made as she left L-Corp was the glass shifting under her feet. She wandered through National City for close to an hour, trying to think of a way to find that proof when she looked down and realized she was above the arts district. Suddenly everything fell into place and Kara was kicking herself as she shot back to her apartment. She crashed through her open bay window and scrambled to her closet, tripping over the edge of the rug as she went. In a moment, she had the box of sketch books and the wrapped canvas in her arms as she rocketed back to L-Corp where she could still hear Lena’s heartbeat.

She landed just as heavily on the broken balcony, which was now thankfully swept clean of glass, startling the people inside the office. Some of the officers were crowded around the low coffee table in front of Lena’s white leather couch, filling out the familiar DEO NDA forms. Good, she was safe for now. Kara strode in as Lena swiveled in her chair, exasperation sinking into her frame. She opened her mouth to most likely tell her to leave again but Kara took advantage of her speed and made it to the corner of her desk before she could utter a sound. She set the box down with a finality and leaned in close enough to hide her next words from the rest of the room.

“Here. You said  _ I’ll believe it when I see it _ . Here. Look at these. Look at them and believe me when I tell you that I’m in love with you.”

Lena stared at her for a long steely moment, and then sank slowly into her chair as she propped her head on her hand, her elbow pushing her keyboard away from her. The DEO agent and the officers who weren’t filling out forms wandered away from them and struck up a conversation. Kara was grateful they had some common sense because she had lost hers somewhere over the arts district.

“What do you want from me, Kara?”

Kara could hear the defeat in her voice and sank tiredly to her knees, still keeping her voice low.

“Nothing. I want a lot of things, Lena. But you don’t owe me anything. You asked for proof and I’m giving it to you. I’ll give you any proof, any answers,  _ anything _ that you need. About any topic. About whatever you want. I should have stopped hiding from you a long time ago. I’m stopping now.”

Lena looked at the box on her desk, the one Kara was hiding behind and apprehension cracked through her mask.

“You don’t have to look right now, but I want you to when you’re ready. I can’t easily explain my feelings for you, but maybe-” She tapped the box as her voice wavered, the wrapped canvas wobbled on top. “-maybe that can.”

Lena looked back at her, visibly trying to stiffen her lip. “Am I one of those things you want?”

The burn of tears welled up in the base of her throat and behind her eyes so quickly that Kara thought she would fall apart right then. She swallowed thickly and chose her next words carefully.

“You’re not a thing, and I would be honored to have whatever you decide to share with me. Even…” She cleared her throat. “Even if that’s nothing at all.”

“What if I want you to leave?”

“Then I leave.”

Lena inhaled a shaky breath and chewed on her lip for a painful moment.

“What if I tell you to leave but I really want you to stay?”

Kara fought back a grimace and released a rough sigh. “Then I’ll leave and stay close by.”

“Can you do that for me?”

Lena’s question was so soft that Kara wasn’t sure that she had heard her correctly, but she nodded. “I can do that.”

The muscles in Lena’s throat worked as she swallowed down another question. She sat up and cleared her throat.

“Thank you, Supergirl.”

Kara braced herself and rose back up to her full height. Lena was looking at her now and Kara couldn’t help the soft smile that tugged sadly at her lips.

“Have a good evening, Miss Luthor. I won’t be far away.”

Lena’s eyes fell to the floor and Kara left, intent on not taking up any more of her time that evening. She had already stolen so much from her.

She stopped by the DEO one last time to check in and make sure she wasn’t needed, but J’onn took one look at her and told her to go home. Alex had eyed her worriedly and followed her out into the hall, and a gentle touch to her elbow had Kara crumbling. It wasn’t until she had cried a wet spot into Alex’s shoulder through a watery explanation of what had happened did she feel strong enough to go home. Her sister had tried to comfort her the best she could, told her that she needed to give Lena time to process, and that maybe it hadn’t been the brightest idea to dump her feelings on her. Kara agreed to all of her suggestions and just hoped that she hadn’t completely lost her for forever.

Another month passed and Kara left Lena alone. The ball was in her court now and she had to play by her rules. It had been a painful wait until she had gotten a text one day saying  _ I’m ready to talk to you now. _ Kara had nearly tripped over her own feet trying to get out of CatCo quick enough. Jess was still stationed at her desk looking like a fierce guard dog as she told Kara to  _ sit _ .

So she sat.

And she waited.

Long enough for her to feel like Lena hadn’t really meant to sent that text. Long enough to ask Jess if she needed to come back another day and quickly shut her mouth when the petite woman pinned her with a look that clearly said to  _ stay _ .

So she stayed.

It wasn’t until nearly an hour later that the door to Lena’s office opened and Kara found herself glued to the seat as green eyes studied her, afraid to move at all in case it chased her away. She disappeared back into her office but let the door stay open. Kara didn’t dare move until Jess gave her the green light, and then she was scrambling out of her seat and into Lena’s office.

It didn’t go well, but Kara didn’t really expect it to. It ended in tears with raised voices and Kara just wanted to go home and sleep and wish that Lex hadn’t outed her.

It became a new routine for them. A text, followed by a wait, and then a talk for Lena to ask questions and try to understand  _ why _ that usually ended in some form of uncomfortable parting. During the fourth time Kara spotted the box of her sketchbooks tucked into Lena’s en suite and the conversation came to a grinding halt when Kara asked if she had looked at them yet. Lena had finally told her  _ no, not yet _ , and Kara excused herself before she said something stupid. Lena had the grace to grant her that quick exit. She didn’t see the box after that.

Eventually there was less screaming. Less tears. More understanding as they finally started to get somewhere. It was hard and it felt like she was cutting open her chest every time, but it was a catharsis that Kara looked forward to even if it left her feeling scrubbed raw. It was pure torture.

Another few months drug on and the anger simmered to hurt, and then to an awkward gap between them. They had been best friends, possibly even on the cusp of something  _ more _ before it has all been ripped away. And now they were trying to stitch that open wound shut, bit by painful bit. Some stitches were quick and neat. A matter of fact. Others took forever to pull the loop tight, and some had to be cut open again when things between them festered. Slowly but surely, the rift between them began to heal and they became something else entirely. They weren’t adversaries, but they weren’t best friends. Or they were  _ trying _ to be best friends again. But it felt twisted and crooked. Some nights Kara missed her so fiercely she felt as if her heart was still laying out on Lena’s balcony.

Around October something finally settled between them. Kara wasn’t quite sure what kind of conclusion Lena had come to, but it seemed to be a positive one. She had simply texted Kara one day  _ I understand _ and invited her to lunch. Things were still weird for a little while, but eventually Lena started loosely trusting her again and Kara wondered if maybe she should ask for her sketchbooks back. Lena hadn’t brought them up since the time Kara had and she was terrified that doing so would bring back the awkwardness between them. It curdled into a mounting anxiety that finally peeked through her usual sunny attitude when she had swung by L-Corp to drop off some materials one afternoon.

“What is it?”

Kara jumped and straightened up in her seat, her heart thundering after getting caught looking around.

“Nothing!”

Lena squinted her eyes at her and waited. It was a new thing she did when she knew Kara was lying and it worked  _ every single time _ . Kara slumped in her seat again and tried to look at Lena. Keyword,  _ tried. _ She could barely look in her direction.

“It’s not a big deal, but I was hoping to get my sketchbooks back? If you’re done with them I mean.”

The predicted awkwardness seeped into the room and a moment later Kara started scrambling for her purse as the burn of shame crept up her neck.

“You know what? Forget I asked. I, uh, should get back to CatCo before they think I’ve decided to skip the rest of the day.”

She was nearly to the door when Lena’s voice stopped her, small and quiet.

“Will you look at them with me?”

It was one of the best and worst things she could have asked her.

Kara flexed her hand on the strap of her purse and forced her shoulders to relax. She turned and tentatively met Lena’s gaze, feeling just as small when she saw how scared she was. Kara balked. She couldn’t brush her off  _ now _ .

Why was she scared?

“I can come back after six?”

Lena shifted in her chair and nodded, pleased that Kara had agreed. Kara didn’t know what else to say, so she bid her goodbye and told her she’d text her before she came over.

She was distracted the rest of the afternoon and just barely managed to get the minimal amount of work completed around helping Nia with her current assignment. In fact she was so distracted that Nia kicked her in the shin and told her to scram at promptly five o’clock. Kara took the bait and high tailed it out of there. But she still had an hour.

In barely a blink, she was rocketing up and into the stratosphere as her cape caught the dying fall sunlight.

She floated high above the clouds until frost formed on her suit and her phone chimed the alarm she had set for a quarter til six. A lump formed in her stomach and Kara eased herself back down through the clouds to the city below. It was dark now, the orange sun having spun away across the horizon. She shot a text off  _ still on for six? _ Lena responded a moment later with  _ any time you’re available. _

Her boots were thumping down on the repaired balcony about fifteen minutes later and her heart was in her throat. Lena was somewhere in her office, Kara could hear her heartbeat, but she couldn’t see her. She stepped up to the new glass and knocked on the door. It seemed like the polite thing to do.

Lena came out of her en suite with a tilt of her head and a furrow in her brow, but both disappeared when she saw Kara. She beckoned to her and Kara let herself into the warm office and made sure the door shut completely behind her.

“Can you come help me reach…?”

“Y-yeah! Sure.”

Kara strode after her and followed Lena to the small closet at the back of her en suite. She took a quick moment to study her as she looked up and pointed to the shelf just out of her reach. Lena looked good, if a little tired. Dressed smartly in a leather pencil skirt and a black long sleeved blouse broken up by red and white striping. Her hair was still immaculate in its twisted bun at the back of her head and she was wearing a sleek pair of heels. Kara was a little self conscious in her super suit, but at least the frost had melted. She stepped forward and pushed off the floor with ease, rising up to where Lena was pointing. It was her box and the wrapped canvas. She swallowed thickly and lifted the items from the high shelf, her heart leaping when a warm hand pressed into her hip for just a moment before Lena snatched it back with a hiss.

“ _ Oh my god, _ Kara you’re  _ freezing _ .”

Kara touched back down with a sheepish look. “I went flying for a bit.”

“ _ Where _ ? In  _ space? _ ”

Kara followed her back out to the office and grimaced. “Not quite  _ that _ far.”

Lena gave her a curious look and walked over to the small coffee table. “Will they fit on here?”

Kara thought about the sketchbooks in the box and scrunched her nose unconsciously like she was trying to adjust her glasses. “I think so.”

“Is there a particular order?”

Kara set the items down on the floor and opened the box. It still smelled like her apartment. It only took her a moment to organize them into three stacks, one per each year that she had known Lena. It felt surreal to see her affection so neatly organized. It reminded her with a funny feeling of how Krypton had treated emotions, carefully organized and controlled in neat little parcels. She shook off the memory and left the canvas wrapped. Kara picked up the oldest book.

“Start with this one.”

Lena studied her for a moment as if she was committing the moment to memory, and then rounded the coffee table. She took the book from Kara with the utmost care and sank onto the white leather. Kara sat next to her hesitantly, rearranging her still chilled cape on her opposite side. Lena smoothed her hands curiously over the cover and peeled the cover up with a deep breath.

Having Lena look through her most private thoughts was terrifying. It felt incredibly wrong, but a growing part of her knew it was right. Lena flipped carefully through each page, commenting  _ you’re very good _ and pausing when she finally reached the first two portraits of herself. She was quiet for a long moment.

“This was when we first met?”

“When I saved you from the helicopter with my cousin.”

Lena nodded, and then continued flipping.

So the rest of their evening went. Lena carefully looking through each book, asking Kara when each one was drawn if she could remember, and treating each page with the utmost respect. What she was holding in her hands wasn’t just a collection of drawings, it was the visual representation of Kara falling in love with her. Kara ordered them pizza somewhere around seven after Lena had kicked off her heels and curled into the couch. Kara noticed that she was still giving her some space and she realized that she was trying to look at these drawings with a logical eye. She didn’t want to be influenced by how close she would sit. Kara gradually gave her space the further along she looked, only taking a break to carefully eat a slice of pizza and visit the en suite.

Around nine o’clock Lena picked up the last book, her face no longer unreadable. It was a mix of emotion that Kara couldn’t quite parse other than it wasn’t a  _ bad _ reaction. She had see all of the sketches. All of the studies. Every single quick silhouette she had snuck when she hadn’t been paying attention to her. Kara had laid her heart bare and now Lena knew the extent of it.

Lena laid the last book flat on her lap and let her fingers skim reverently over the cover. She squared her shoulders and opened it, and then slumped when faced with her own visage twisted in a snarling rage. She reached out and traced the cruel line of her mouth.

“I hurt you.”

Kara swallowed against the threat of tears. “It was warranted.”

Lena shot her a glare, her eyes glassy with tears. “Stop that.”

“It was, Lena. I deserved every ounce of your anger.”

“ _ No you didn’t. _ ”

Her whisper hung between them. A pure olive branch extended with the utmost faith.

A tear escaped down Kara’s cheek before she could stop it and she wiped hastily at her face. She schooled her features and gestured to the sketchbook. “There’s not much left.”

Lena reluctantly let her be and started flipping again, hunching lower and lower into her seat as her portraits became looser, more unfinished. Kara’s despair was oozing from each stroke on the page and Kara could remember how it felt as it stuck to her ribs. Lena barely finished the book and then she was closing it and holding it tight as if her grip could hold back the ache that exuded from the paper. They sat in silence for a long painful moment unable to look at each other. The wrapped canvas caught Kara’s eye and she reached for it.

A warm hand settled on her knee and she paused just as her fingers brushed the newsprint.

“Let me?”

Kara looked back at Lena over her shoulder. Her face was open, the familiar aching trust that Kara had though she had lost nearly a year ago. And something else she couldn’t place.

“Please?”

Kara handed her the canvas. Slender fingers gently peeled back the masking tape piece by piece, unwrapping it until it lay flat in her lap and all the could see was the back of the frame. Lena hesitated a moment longer, and then flipped it over.

“Oh  _ Kara _ .”

The vibrant gouache portrait was still quite brilliant in its warm golds and rosy hues. Lena’s striking resemblance was looking out from the layers of paint with bright happy green eyes and the hint of a warm smile. It was how she had looked at Kara when she didn’t think anyone was watching.

“That was when I realized I was in love with you.”

Kara was annoyed that her voice wasn’t steadier, that the tears wouldn’t stop slipping down her cheeks, but it was important that Lena knew. She watched her cradle the painting between her hands and pour over it, holding it just far enough away that her own tears didn’t fall onto it. Kara wouldn’t have minded if they had. Lena was quiet for a long moment.

“Was?”

Kara quickly took the painting out of her hands and propped it against the coffee table, and then offered her hands to Lena. She didn’t hesitate to take them and Kara could feel her shaking through her iron grip. She was looking at her again with that open trust and fear and the other emotion. It took her a moment, and then it clicked.

Lena was looking at her the way Kara looked at her.

Kara held back from pulling her into her arms because she needed to say her next words directly to Lena so nothing would get lost in translation.

“Present tense, Lena. I’m still in love with you.”

Her words hung between them like honey and the fear bled away from Lena to be replaced by something brighter. Something like hope.

“Kara?” She asked after a long moment. “Do you remember when I said, what if I wanted you to leave?”

“Yes.” The memory still stung.

“And then when I asked you if you would wait for me? Close by?”

“I do.”

Lena paused again and shifted closer. Kara could feel her knee pressing into her own and she let her take one of her hands back. She couldn’t help but gasp in a quiet ragged breath as warm fingers traced over her brow and brushed a lock of hair from her face. She could see the gold flecks in Lena’s eyes.

“What if I want you to kiss me?”

It was as if the air had been sucked out of the room. Kara could feel that they were about to plunge head first into something  _ more _ and Rao help her she  _ wanted it _ .

She was selfish with her drawings.

Kara wanted to be selfish with Lena too.

“Then I would kiss you.”

Warm lips were pressing to hers before she could barely finish giving her answer and she was kissing Lena. Lena was  _ kissing _ her. Kara felt like her chest was full of fizzly golden butterflies. And then Lena was kissing her harder. Hungrier. Kara could feel the dam burst within her and she was pulling her into her arms in an attempt to get closer. Flames licked up inside her chest and something that felt suspiciously like relief and triumph sped through her veins when Lena licked into her mouth with a soft gasp. She let herself be pushed back into the couch, let Lena climb into her lap and ravish her, let her press her answering feelings into her mouth over and over and  _ over _ and lost track of time until they were clinging to each other like survivors in a storm. Kara didn’t care how long they had been there, she just hoped that this meant that they were back to being them.

“I can’t draw you a portrait.” Lena finally breathed against her and Kara knew exactly what she was trying to say.

“You don’t have to do anything for me.”

She felt too hot under the techie spandex of her suit, too giddy with her head in the clouds and everything was so much and so big but she was  _ happy _ . Lena pushed up, resting her hands on her shoulders. Her hair, still stiff from too much hairspray was mussed and her lipstick was  _ beyond _ smeared. Kara knew a good portion of it was probably on her own face. Lena’s cheeks were rosy and her eyes were bright and wide. She was looking at Kara like how she had panted her in the gouache painting. Looking at her like she was the most important thing in the world.

“May I love you too?”

Emotion choked her and Kara could only nod and whisper a strangled  _ yes _ .

Lena kissed her again with a promise on her lips. One that Kara gladly returned.


	27. Pop of Color

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Needed a break from nanowrimo so here's a fun little thing with no editing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ask: Ok, check this out. Lena a goth goddess and kara a sweet cardigan girl. But boom she falls hard for Lena and pretends to be goth. Lena finds her endearing but a bit off script because she keeps saying golly and sings Britney but all. Dressed in black. Alex will kill kara because she stole all her clothes.
> 
> Addendum: Ok but what if college no powers au and they're already dating ready go.

The first time Kara wore something other than a fun subtle patterned button up or a pastel cardigan over a cute top Lena nearly made them late for their date. Sure, it was just a simple black tee and fitted faded jeans. But it was the simple cut leather jacket with the quilt pattern stitching on the shoulders that really caught her attention.

“My,  _ my _ . Miss Danvers, what a pleasant surprise.” She had greeted, and then promptly preoccupied herself with Kara’s lips for the next ten minutes.

The second time Kara wore something black it was a pair of new black jeans that were so tight they looked like they were painted on and a pair of matte black boots. The simple white tank top with thin low straps hadn’t helped either, and Lena was happy to strip her out of both later after they had gotten back from the library. Kara had teased her and managed to mumble that maybe she should buy more black clothing. Lena had made sure she approved of the idea.

Since that confirmation, more articles of black, borderline grunge goth clothing had been sneaking into Kara’s wardrobe. Lena thought it was sweet the way she was trying to dress more like her, but she could tell she wasn’t completely comfortable. Not to mention her language wasn’t nearly as harsh and it was like a barbie had been dunked in black tempera paint. Not that Lena was complaining. The strange dichotomy was absolutely adorable, but it certainly was doing something for her. She  _ did _ like pulling her in for a kiss by her thin pyramid studded belt or the simple black suspenders she had started wearing. But what Lena  _ really _ wanted to see was Kara in that black leather jacket again.

“Hey.”

Kara looked up from her textbook, her hair falling in loose beachy waves around her shoulders from under a plain black beanie. Her glasses were low on her nose and she was sporting a darker lip color than usual. Lena was  _ definitely _ trying not to think about how good her legs looked in the fishnet tights she was sporting that day underneath a pair of jean cutoffs.

“You know I like all of this,” She gestured to her with a lazy circle of her finger. “Black. On you. But why?”

A blush warmed Kara’s face and she shrugged, suddenly more interested in her schoolwork. “I guess I just felt like trying something different.”

“You know, Kara. You don’t have to dress for me.” Lena prodded, leaning forward onto her elbows. “Even if I do find you incredibly attractive in leather.”

“Yeah, I know.” She mumbled, scrunching her nose.

“I’ve also noticed you don’t repeat your more… goth-y outfits.”

Kara actually  _ ducked _ her head at that one. “I, um. They’re a little  _ too _ black? And maybe Alex got mad at me for borrowing her clothes without asking all the time.”

Lena bit back a laugh and slid her hand across the table, her chest warming when Kara easily took her hand. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”

Kara blushed deeper and sank down onto the table, hiding her face in the crook of her elbow.

“But seriously, Kara. Don’t feel like you need to dress in black to impress me. Color suits you.”

“I know.” She mumbled. “But I like the way you look at me when I do.”

It was Lena’s turn to feel her face warm under the weight of Kara’s blue eyes peering up at her. Her mouth felt dry and it took her a moment to find her words and to not think about how the heat in her face was traveling down to sit low in her hips.

“Well. Maybe try a little of both?”

Kara sat up, her eyes dark in a way that usually meant Lena was going to be in trouble later. “Okay. I’ll try something for the mixer tomorrow.”

“Am I still meeting you there?” Lena asked and tried not to look at how Kara’s lips were pulling into a smirk.

“Yeah, Snapper wouldn’t reschedule.” She griped and got back to work.

Lena thought about what Kara would wear that evening, and it was the first thing she wondered when she woke up. It snuck into her thoughts in between classes and it left her guessing as she looked for her at the house party later that night. The music thrummed and the base vibrated heavily in her chest, bone deep. She had picked a spot near the door to the kitchen, tucked just out of the way with a perfect view of the front door. Lena had just sent Sam off to go dance with Alex Danvers when a familiar figure caught her attention at the front door.

It wasn’t the cheesy, heart stopping moment that romantics talked about.

Oh no.

This was an overwhelming heady heat that made her heart leap into her throat and excitement roll through her like a twisting python.

Kara had her hair down again under the same black beanie, but she had left her glasses behind and opted for smokey dark eye makeup. The jacket,  _ Alex’s _ jacket, was snug across her broad shoulders. But what made her mouth hang open wasn’t the black tee or the black boots. It was the high waisted red plaid skirt that just barely covered enough and the simple black knee socks. Lena couldn’t help but stare at how the muscles flexed and pulled in her thighs with each step, the skirt following the sway of her hips. Lena’s brain gave up on most higher functions. By the time Kara reached her Lena felt a little faint and more than a little turned on. All because of a pop of color.

“Hi.”

Kara was standing in front of her, close enough that Lena imagined she could feel her body heat.

“Hi. Do we have to stay much longer?”

Kara laughed lowly and stepped a little closer. Lena’s eyes were locked on her legs. “Can you make it an hour?”

“Uh. Maybe?”

Long fingers played with the silvery buckle of her belt and Lena bit back a noise in her throat as Kara let her nose brush across her cheekbone. Her breath puffed warm across the studs in her ears.

“If you’re good I’ll let you see what other color I’m wearing.”

Lena was quite sure her face was as red as Kara’s skirt, her voice golden honey.

“Be right back!”

Lena blinked at her girlfriend’s bright tone and took a deep breath as she slipped into the kitchen. Her solo cup crinkled ominously in her hand as she took stock of herself and realized that she might not make it to the hour mark. She wanted to find that other color.

So much for good behavior.


	28. Good Girl

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: A supercorp fic based on that tweet "I didn't Know I had a kink till this woman called me a 'good girl' and now I do" in which Lena says she doesn't have a particular kink but Kara one day calls her a good girl and oops, there it is hahahahahahh
> 
> I dont have time to actually write a full fic but heres a little thingy because I’m still wrapping up my current oneshot and needed a breather from it. Thanks for readin yall!

Lena Luthor was a private woman. She kept to herself taking care of her needs through discretion and cash, whatever they may be. It depended on her mood, but she was no stranger to play. Playing was a carnal need that was to be sated if she were to stay focused. At the most, she was addressed as  _ Yes Ma’am _ , or not at all. Clean and simple. She liked to be in charge with no strings attached.

The first time it happens Lena doesn’t think much about it. She was battling a rare bout of flu and Kara, bless her, had come over to bring her soup and medicine. She almost hadn’t heard the soft  _ good girl _ over her wheezy breaths, slipping into a drug-induced sleep as a warm hand brushed her hair back from her sweaty forehead.

-

The second time it happens, Lena is more than a little tipsy and hanging onto Kara at the bar. The music is loud and thrums in her chest and she accepts the glass of water with a pout, stamping down the heat swirling in her ribs at her friend’s close proximity. It takes her a few minutes but after she finishes the drink Kara leans close, her lips brushing against the shell of her ear.

_ Good girl. _

Her muddled senses from too many whiskey sours paired with the hot wash of Kara’s breath on the soft skin behind her ear pull her up short with a distracting tug in her belly.

-

The third time it happens Lena is sneaking in a quick self defense session at the DEO. The training room is bathed in amber, thanks to her strong-arming the covert government agency into replacing the kryptonite emitters. Kara was breathing heavily, soaked in sweat and grinning so widely Lena thought she was on the verge of laughter. They were both flagging at the end of their training, but the way Kara’s eyes looked in the red light distracted her. They were dark, calculating, curiously studying her as if she was on the verge of a discovery. Lena swallowed her nerves down and struck, struggling to grapple Kara in a tangle of sweat-slicked limbs. She succeeds, barely, twisting their legs and tackling Kara to the ground with a pin.

They land in a graceless heap with Kara’s arms twisted uncomfortably behind her back and her thighs squeezing around Lena’s waist. She can feel the air shift between them and Kara’s grin has waned into something more akin to hunger.

_ Good girl _ .

-

The fourth time it happens Kara is wiping a drop of spaghetti sauce off her lip with her thumb, but she doesn’t even get out the first syllable because Lena is crashing into her and kissing the words away.

-

The fifth time it happens Lena is panting, chin slick and pulse incessantly heavy between her legs as a breathlessly flushed Kara combs her messy hair back.

_ Good girl _ .


	29. Eat Your Veggies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> happy first posted writing of 2020

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Lena does the impossible and creates a vegetable dish that Kara absolutely loves the taste of and isn't at all whiny about eating, in fact she rewards Lena by railing her the whole night.

“You have butter on the counter. Who are you, and what have you done with my wife? Oh Rao, it’s  _ real _ butter. Well, unsalted, but still  _ real butter _ .”

Lena paused in her slicing to roll her eyes. “If you’re going to bother me you can make yourself useful and get the dutch oven out of the pantry.”

A quick breeze ruffled her hair and she heard Kara set the pot on the kitchen island. Warm hands curled around her waist and her wife pressed herself flush to her back, careful not to jostle her too much with a sharp knife in her hands. Kara pressed a warm kiss to the side of her neck, and then the corner of her jaw, coaxing an easy affection to the surface.

“Anything else?”

“Don’t make fun of my butter again.”

Kara snorted. “Okay, but can you tell me  _ why _ we have butter? I thought we had moved to coconut oil.”

Lena hummed and pulled another root vegetable towards her, content in not moving away from where her wife was glommed onto her back.

“If I’m remembering correctly, most vegetables have fat-soluble vitamins that our bodies can’t properly process if they aren’t paired with a fat.”

“But then olive oil or coconut oil would work.” Kara mumbled into her skin a pressed another kiss to the crook of her neck. “Or did you just miss butter?”

Lena huffed, caught, and felt Kara smiling against her. “Well, I have to make vegetables palatable for you  _ somehow _ .”

“Hey, I  _ like _ them well enough!”

Lena pushed aside the chopped vegetable, quipping lightly with a poke to the hand flat on her belly. “But you  _ always _ find something that  _ just isn’t right _ . Maybe I’m just tired of hearing you whine.”

Kara made a scoffing noise into her shoulder. “It’s not  _ my _ fault vegetables are boring. And like, I have weird Kryptonian taste buds.”

“Which is why I’m trying something else.” She set the knife down and craned her head just far enough to press a kiss to Kara’s temple. “And you can pretend you like it.”

“What if I really do like it?” Kara waggled her brows.

Lena hummed in thought and started rearranging her ingredients. “I’ll let you figure that out.”

Kara made some kind of disgruntled noise and pressed another kiss to her shoulder.

“Fine.”

* * *

Lena sucked in a breath and pressed her face into the pillow with a moan, her orgasm rippling through her in a crackling tingle of electricity. She was tired, she was sweaty, and she hadn’t had her back blown out like this in quite a  _ while _ .

“ _ Fuck, Kara _ -”

Deliciously slick friction, courtesy of Kara languidly rolling her hips into her made her squirm and reach behind her blindly. Her hand made contact with her hip, fingers tripping over the leather of the harness around her waist. Kara smoothed a hand from her hips up her back and curled over her shoulder.

“Yes, dear?”

Her question was smugly paired with another roll of her hips. Lena melted into the bed with a gasp and risked a glance at the clock on the bedside table.

_ 2:52 AM _

Well.

“I’m taking tomorrow off.” She decided in a pleasure-induced haze, and pushed her hips back into her wife with a pleased sigh.

Kara laughed. “Maybe you should leave that vegetable dish for Friday nights.”

Lena’s agreement was cut short by Kara’s free hand sneaking down between her legs.


	30. Shore Leave

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Alt first meeting au where Kara is flying and lands on a beach and realises a second too late that it’s a nudist beach as she gets an eyeful of Luthor titty. Lena somehow coaxes her to stick around
> 
> French is roughly "Hello, sorry, I just just need to rest-"

Gravity pulled heavy at Kara’s bones in a dangerous indicator that told her she was barely running on fumes. If she didn’t land, and land  _ soon _ , she would completely solar flare and burn herself out. The only issue with  _ that _ , was that she was in the middle of nowhere over the Mediterranean Sea. Kara tried to conserve her depleted powers by using her cape to glide, rising up high in a slow steady climb with her flight, and then letting herself free fall like a wingsuiter. Alex had pointed her north and continued to monitor her from halfway across the world, calling out how much further she had to go to the closest shore every few minutes and keeping her calm. Kara wasn’t afraid, but she was definitely a little nervous. After a long two weeks of hard power usage and rainy weather, there was only so much restoration the sun bed at the DEO could offer her. And now after a strung out arial fight with a rogue alien head hunter she had been forced to drive out of Earth’s orbit? She needed the real deal, and parking on a beach in southern France for a few hours sounded  _ amazing _ .

The com crackled to life in her ear and Alex’s voice bled through.

“ _ You’re almost there, Kara, just two more miles. Do you see the beach? _ ”

Kara squinted against the wind and picked out the stripe of pale sand against the clear aqua water. “I see it.”

“ _ Good. The DGAC knows you’re in their airspace. You’ve been cleared by customs for 24 hours, but if you want us to send a transport out it can get to you in about eight hours. _ ”

Kara started down into a glide with a shaky breath. She felt like she had been squeezed out like a used sponge. “I’ll let you know. Thanks, Alex.”

“ _ Let me know when you get down safely. _ ”

“Will do.”

Kara grimaced and started angling herself down towards the nearly deserted shoreline, intermittently using her reserves to slow her descent. She was coasting just above the water about fifty meters from the surf when she was overcome with a wave of fatigue that screamed  _ stop now or solar flare _ . Her heart lurched in her throat and she threw herself up in a low arc in one last burst, and then let herself crash into the surf. The warm briny water closed over her head and Kara kept her eyes shut from the sting. A gentle current pushed her into the shallow water and she let it carry her until her knees hit the soft white sand. Kara pulled herself up onto the shore in a fit of spluttering gasps and tired groans, dragging her weight up until her chest was out of the water, and then keeled over onto her back sucking in deep breaths of summer air. Her eyes slipped shut and the sun warmed her. Kara was glad to feel solid ground underneath her.

After taking a moment to just breathe, Kara wiped her sandy hand clumsily on her suit and depressed the little ptt button on her ear piece.

“Made it.” She panted.

“ _ Thanks, Kara. Let us know if you need a ride. _ ”

“‘Kay.” She let her arm fall back to the wet sand with a soft thump.

Kara just laid there for a long moment, slowly soaking up the sun. She was  _ exhausted _ , but already the strong rays of the midday sun were helping her feel a little better. If she had pushed just a little harder Kara knew she would have been calling for a ride home. Somehow she had just managed to skirt around a full flare out. She had been resting for barely a moment when she picked out someone scuffing over the soft sand towards her. Kara bit back a tired sigh and hoped that it wasn’t someone looking for a photo op. A shadow covered her face and Kara mumbled an apology. Whoever it was smelled like coconut sunscreen and expensive perfume.

“Uh,  _ b’jour, désolée, j’dois juste me reposer _ -”

“...are you alright? Would you like to come up under the shade?”

A woman. An Irish woman? No, American? Kara cracked an eye and blearily looked up at the person above her. The sun was a little too bright around the broad brim of the woman’s hat and she squeezed her eyes shut again.

“Yes, thank you. I will in a few minutes, if you don’t mind. I just,” She cracked a grin, feeling a little loopy. “-need to wait until I can make my legs work again.”

“If you insist. Wave an arm, or something, if you need anything. I’ll make sure you aren’t bothered.” The woman backed off after a pause, sounding a little worried.

Kara thanked her again, feeling a little slurred, and listened to her new guardian scuff back up the beach. She managed to turn her head and look around to see if anyone else was coming towards her, and sighed in relief when the next closest people on either side of her were at least a few hundred meters away. Good. She had time for a real breather.

The rejuvenating warmth of the sun and the rhythmic lapping of the surf at her legs lulled her into a doze. Kara drifted for a while, not quite falling asleep, and focused on not moving for a while. In her more lucid moments, she would listen around her to the gulls or to the woman keeping watch over her. It wasn’t often that Kara was able to just exist out in the world anymore, much less have some kind stranger tell her that she could, and she relished the time to herself for a solid half hour. She could feel her body trying to suck up the sun’s light and knew the process would be quicker if more of her skin was exposed. Kara laid there and debated on stripping out of her suit for another little while, at least convincing herself that the woman nearby seemed nice enough to sit with.

Eventually Kara sat up with another tired groan as the muscles in her body screamed in protest. She could feel that she was away from the brink of a solar flare, but she needed at least another hour or two in the full sun before she would be able to make it home… though she wouldn’t mind a full weekend off. Kara sat in the sand for another long moment and just stared out at the water. It was paradise compared to the beaches of Midvale and National City. Quiet, clean, calm. Kara unclasped her cape from her shoulders and stretched her arms to the sky, grunting quietly when her spine popped. She sat for another long moment, and then worked up the energy to tug her waterlogged boots and DEO issued kevlar woven socks off. It wasn’t like she needed the kevlar, but it didn’t make her as annoyed to tear those up than some of her favorite patterned socks. Before she attempted to rise to her feet, she scraped her sandy salt-stiff hair into a messy bun and tied it up with the emergency elastic she kept on her wrist under her suit sleeve.

Kara bit the bullet, grabbed her cape and boots, and staggered to her feet with another groan. It was easier taking that first step than it was standing up, and she trudged unsteadily up to the white and blue striped umbrella. She was so focused on actually making it there and thinking about the sand in between her toes that she didn’t notice that the woman was watching her. Kara finally looked up when she was only a few feet away, squinting through the bright sun reflecting off the sand. She still couldn’t really tell who the woman was behind her large black sunglasses and white wide-brimmed hat, but she could definitely see the pale slender legs and black bikini bottom. And the unfurled French newspaper she was holding up in front of her.

“Hi, thank you again. Do you mind…?” Kara trailed off and pointed to the sand right next to the umbrella.

The woman smiled. “Make yourself comfortable.”

Kara slumped in relief, not realizing she had been bracing for a rebuke and set about spreading her cape flat and laying her boots and socks out to dry. She felt a little guilty about encroaching on the woman’s space and turned again to thank her one more time, and drew up short. The woman had taken her sunglasses off and it was glaringly obvious that this wasn’t just  _ some woman _ .

It was  _ Lena Luthor _ .

And she was… topless.

_Oh Rao_, help her. She was unfairly attractive _and_ topless _and_ _both of her nipples were pierced_.

Lena Luthor has pierced-

Her brain stopped working.

“Oh.”

Kara slapped a sandy hand over her eyes, feeling her face burn hot when she realized she was staring slack-jawed.

Lena Luthor laughed at her sudden embarrassment, not even bothering to cover herself. “Feeling better?”

“Um. Yes? I’m  _ so _ sorry, Miss Luthor. I didn’t mean to space out like that. I’m a little… out of it.”

“Don’t worry, Supergirl. I won’t tell anyone.”

Teasing amusement was heavy in Lena Luthor’s answer and Kara breathed another awkward sigh of relief, but offered another out when her muddled brain reminded her of the feud between their families. “That was a terrible first impression. I can leave if you want me to?”

“No, that’s alright. I wouldn’t mind the company.”

Kara peeked out from between her fingers, valiantly keeping her eyes locked on Lena Luthor’s face as her heart hammered in her chest. “Are you sure? I  _ am _ Supergirl.”

Lena Luthor’s expression softened at her tentative question, hearing Kara’s nerves in her question.

“I’d like to think we’re better than those boys. Stay and rest a while, I know you must need it.”

Kara let her hand drop and nervously scrubbed the sand off on her thigh. “Right. Thank you, that’s very kind.”

Lena Luthor murmured a soft  _ of course _ and fiddled with her newspaper for a long awkward moment. Kara glanced back at her face and caught her looking at her. There was a funny lurch in her chest and they shared a shy awkward laugh, soft blushes coloring their cheeks. Kara flapped her hand nonchalantly and slowly sat back down onto her cape.

“Don’t mind me.”

It was easy to decide to peel down the top half of her suit, now that she had gotten an entire eyeful of Lena Luthor topless. It meant that paparazzi most likely weren’t around. She discarded the metal belt next to her boots and twisted her arms behind her back, found the hidden zipper in her suit, and pulled it all the way down til it stopped at her lower back. Kara wriggled her arms out of her suit and pushed the damp fabric down to her hips, feeling infinitely better as the sun hit her bare skin. She was just about to lay back when an annoying little thought wormed its way into her brain.

_ Take your bra off. It’s only fair. _

Kara blinked.

Why did she think that?

Kara stared at her bare feet and dug her heels into the sand. She must have gotten hung up on her awkward intrusive thought a little longer than she realized because the French newspaper crinkled again.

“Is something wrong?”

“Oh, uh. No, I’m just-” She gestured to her black sports bra. “-trying to dry a little before I lay down.”

“It would probably dry faster if you took it off.”

Kara flushed again.

A newspaper page turned.

Kara turned and looked over her shoulder at Lena Luthor, who was nonchalantly engrossed in her article, her eyes hidden again by dark sunglasses. If Lena Luthor wanted to play a game, Kara was ready. But first she needed to know if there was a game to begin with, and barreled in head-first with all the subtlety of a rhinoceros.

“I can’t tell if you’re genuinely looking out for me, or hitting on me.”

A sly smile tugged at the corner of Lena Luthor’s mouth and her brow rose into a smug tease.

“Could it be both?”

Set, match.

Kara huffed a short laugh, and then peeled off her sports bra and draped it over her boots. She heard the newspaper crinkle again as Lena Luthor gripped a little tighter at it, and sprawled out on her back with another tired groan. It was strange to be so exposed in the open, especially in front of someone she didn’t know,  _ and _ someone she was warned away from… but Lena Luthor had tapped into her competitive streak with only four words and a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. Kara had been eager to rise to the bait.

Her mind didn’t wander long and Kara’s briefly forgotten fatigue caught back up with her. The warmth of the sun lulled her back into a doze, only rising up out of it a little while later to groggily turn over onto her stomach and drift off some more. She was brought back to the present from a gentle call of  _ Supergirl _ , and cracked a bleary eye open. Lena Luthor had switched to what looked like a bioengineering journal and was looking at her curiously.

“W’ssit?” She mumbled against her forearm.

“Would you like to stay for dinner?”

Kara nearly snorted when her brain immediately supplied  _ would you like to stay forever?, _ but didn’t think that Lena Luthor was a big Disney fan. She levered herself up onto her elbows with a quick quirk of her mouth.

“I shouldn’t, I don’t want to intrude on you any more than I already have.”

“So I suppose this isn’t the smartest time to tell you that I’m relocating Luthorcorp to National City in four months.”

The sudden frankness took Kara off guard and she couldn’t help but laugh, loud and bright. She slid back down onto her chest and propped her chin up, feeling warmed in a different way when Lena Luthor returned her grin.

“How about we get coffee when you’re there? Fully clothed.”

“Great. And dinner?”

“I’d love to.”


	31. Take My Breath Away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: (kara) Perfect as one of the camp counselors in an 80s camp movie. Teaches the nerds computers but busts out the guns to train her misfit students to defeat the richie riches from the rival camp across the lake who, if they win, will annex their shithole but still beloved camp and turn it into a golf course. 10/10.
> 
> My response:  
TEN OUT OF FUCKING TEN somebody write it  
OR  
kara is the camp director of the nerd camp, lena the director of the hoity toity camp, they gradually fall in love and it all boils over when they get caught in the rain and take shelter in the canoe shed
> 
> It's a mess, I'm sorry. Have "Take My Breath Away" by Berlin queued up for the end.

Kara stomped over the sandy bank of the lake, her boots sinking into the sand and her glowering eyes trained on the striking lone figure on the dock shared by the two neighboring campsites.

_ Lena Luthor _ .

Kara often day dreamed about coming out on top, victorious, over the insufferably pompous Lena Luthor.

Ever since she had taken over Argo Campsite, a liberal arts camp for misfits and nerds her adoptive parents had run for nearly thirty years, Kara had been fighting tooth and nail to save it. It hadn’t always been so stressful. The first three years had been fairly smooth sailing.

But then something shifted across the lake.

The lake they shared with the Metropolis Science Camp for Gifted Youngsters.

MSCCY, or  _ Messy _ as Kara dubbed it, had more or less started advancing their team of attorneys with enticing offers to buy up the camp ground. Why?

For a  _ golf course _ .

Or some other kind of obnoxious and unnecessary environmentally unfriendly luxury that Lex Luthor had listed off in his snotty phone call when she had refused for a fifth time.  _ An investment _ he had said.  _ Get out of Midvale and move to National City _ he said. Kara  _ had _ done that. She had played the rat race for a couple years right out of college, worked as an assistant to Cat Grant for three, then as a junior reporter at CatCo World Wide Media for a few more. But it felt empty. It wasn’t enough, and it definitely didn’t make her happy. So she quit, packed up and went home to Midvale. Now she spent her time running Argo and teaching classes at the local community arts center. She still wrote,  _ a lot _ , but split it between freelance and ghost writing and her own personal novel. She was comfortable, lived on the campgrounds, and had generally been enjoying a nice fulfilling life until  _ she _ walked in.

_ Lena Luthor _ .

Last summer a week before the campers were to arrive for their stay, Lena Luthor had waltzed right into her office in too expensive clothes and too expensive perfume with a stupid expensive hairstyle and had the  _ gall _ . To look Kara right in the eye and tell her to enjoy her last summer at Argo, because it would belong to the Luthor’s in the fall.

Kara hadn’t even been able to form a sentence she was so shocked, and simply watched Lena Luthor saunter back out of her office in towering heels with her jaw on the floor.

It had only gotten worse from there.

Her summer had been riddled with surprise visits and run-ins with Lena Luthor that steadily became more and more standoffish the longer Kara fought against the Luthor advances. Barely-polite quips became digs at the other’s looks and camps. Digs became waspish conversations when young ears weren’t present. By the last month of the summer they easily tumbled into heated full-blown arguments that definitely were coming from more personal experiences. It wasn’t until Lena Luthor had made a cutting comment about parents that Kara had truly exploded.

_ Don’t you dare talk about my family. _

There had been quite a few more choice and horrendously personal words that scraped her throat raw and left her rival shrinking back in shame for the first time that summer. Lena Luthor had simply stated,  _ I apologize, I should not have said that _ . And left. Kara hadn’t seen her for the last few weeks of the summer camp year. After nearly three months of harassment it was heaven.

The rest of her year progressed and she ended up applying for some grants to help clean up the lake and repair the support beams in the dock that she couldn’t do herself. With the grant requests sent off, Kara took a two week vacation visiting Alex in National City. Her sister was happy to have her crash on her couch and they spent as much time as they could together around her detective job. By the time she got back to Midvale, her grant requests had been canceled due to MSCCY completely covering the costs out of pocket to revitalize the lake and repair the dock. It was totally out of the blue and Kara was surprised again when Lena Luthor had knocked on her door one chilly fall day. Kara had awkwardly thanked her for her help and had explained she couldn’t find an invoice to pay back Argo’s portion of the cost. Lena Luthor shrugged and told her that it would be the Luthor’s lake soon enough, but Kara could hear the tired defeat in her voice. Almost as if she didn’t want to mean it.

So of course Kara was suspicious.

She had walked her out of her office, trying to remain polite and didn’t see the woman for the rest of the year.

And then one rainy day in April, there was another knock at her door.

In waltzed Lena Luthor in a trendy black trench coat and smokey dark makeup that did something funny to her in such a way that it made her question a lot of opinions Kara had. Specifically, opinions about Lena.

“Miss Danvers.”

Kara swallowed thickly, eyes dropping to the water she had tracked in, nearly getting caught on the shiny pair of towering black heels. “Miss Luthor.”

“Unfortunately, I believe you know why I am here.”

Kara sighed and pushed up out of her seat, leaving her reading glasses on her stack of registration forms. She squared her shoulders and rounded her desk, slipping her hands in the pockets of her paint-stained jeans. Lena watched her with a calculating expression as she sat crooked on the corner of her desk.

“Unfortunately, I believe you know my answer.”

Lena quirked a brow at her parroted snark and a smirk tugged at the corner of her blood red lips. “I have a proposition for you.”

Kara hummed in disgruntled patience, an act that drew a broad grin from her rival.

“A series of events throughout the summer. If your kids win, you keep your camp. And if mine win? Well…” She quirked her brow again with a nonchalant shrug. “I’d be happy to deliver the paperwork tomorrow-”

“Deal.”

“Oh?”

Kara slid from her perch and propped her fists on her hips in what her camp kids called her  _ Supergirl _ pose, pulling up as much bravado as she could around her like armor. “I said, deal. My kids will blow yours out of the water and teach them what it’s really like to work on a team.”

Lena’s grin turned wolfish and she stepped forward into Kara’s space, her heels clicking ominously in the office. She reached out and smoothed the collar of Kara’s t-shirt. It took all of her self control not to react to the heat of her touch. To lean away, or lean forward, Kara didn’t know and she could feel a blush crawling up her neck. It was horrendously confusing. Lena leaned in close enough that Kara could see the faint freckles under her makeup, her expensive perfume coiling around her like a snake. She hadn’t realized how pretty the color of her eyes were when they weren’t narrowed at her in annoyance.

“We’ll see about that.”

Her breath, minty toothpaste, puffed warmly over her chin and Kara was seized by the gut reaction to kiss her. She dug her fingers harshly into her own hips to hold herself steady but she couldn’t stop herself from looking at her mouth. Blood red that got caught in straight white teeth as Lena bit her lip, the pads of her fingers still toying with the collar of her t-shirt. Kara wanted those fingers on her skin. She missed the way Lena’s brow arched, too caught up in the close proximity of her body heat and subtle perfume that smelled more expensive than the entire camp of Argo.

“Have a good day, Miss Danvers. I’ll be in touch.”

Lena Luthor stepped back out of her space with a smirk that made Kara feel like she was about to be eaten alive. She drug her eyes down her frozen posture, lingering somewhere around her waist, then flicked back up to Kara’s red face. Her smirk pulled a little wider and Lena left the office, her heels clicking sharply on the yellowed linoleum floor. Kara swallowed a swirl of emotions and physical reactions she hadn’t paired up with her rival before and went for a run, feeling entirely too hot under the collar. 

True to her word, Lena Luthor had been in touch. She sent over an email with a list of competitive activities both camps could participate in, from relays to canoe races to coding and robot building. It was  _ extensive _ . It was a challenge a week. With the entire summer camp lasting ten weeks, it was a lot of curriculum disruption. She still wasn’t sold on it even though she had said yes, and had talked it over with Eliza. After her step mother told her what she thought, next she talked to Nia Nal her program coordinator, and then brought it to all of her counselors. If there was one thing Kara was going to do, it was to make sure that everyone knew what was happening and had their say in the matter. If there were too many of her employees hesitant and unwilling to participate, then she would have to eat her own words of her initial agreement. It was the fair thing to do. Kara knew she didn’t have the right to bargain her employee’s jobs on the backs of a petty series of kid’s competitions.

Much to Kara’s surprise, almost every single one of her counselors were on board with at least the idea of friendly competition, but they all agreed with her that it shouldn’t fall to the shoulders of the kids. Maybe they would make some new friends? Maybe if the Luthors saw how kids can just be kids, they would finally back off? It was a pipe dream, but Kara was just crazy enough to try it. So she crafted a letter back to Lena Luthor.

_ Miss Luthor, _

_ Argo Camp accepts your challenges, with one stipulation. These challenges will not determine the outcome of who owns this campsite. For the campers, this place is a memory to love and cherish where they make life long friends. I’m not going to take that away from them by forcing them to compete for their camp. _

_ They aren’t responsible for the future of Argo, I am. _

_ If you would still like some friendly competition, we would be happy to oblige. But for now? This camp will never be for sale. _

_ Kara Danvers _

Her letter had been answered with a simple  _ Game On _ , and an enclosed document of a monetary offer for the purchase of Argo Campsite. Kara immediately put the letter in the trash.

Before she knew it, the campers arrived and the summer truly got into full swing. The camp ground was bustling with kids from ages ten to seventeen, laughing, playing, singing along to the goofy songs that Kara had learned after she was adopted by the Danvers, and making all kinds of arts and crafts. There were campfires at night after a warm dinner in the canteen, and calisthenics with more goofy songs and stretches to wake them up in the morning before breakfast. Kara carried a bottle of light pink calamine lotion in the back pocket of her cutoff jean shorts and dolled it out liberally at bed time. In the middle of the week she told the campers they would be having a friendly competition with the MSCCY kids that Saturday afternoon before the big end of the week bonfire. Many of the older kids who knew about the rivalry between Kara and the Luthors grumbled quietly, but didn’t say anything when the younger kids buzzed with excitement. Kara made direct eye contact with as many of the older kids as she could when she told them it was  _ only that and nothing more _ . She must have reassured them because none of them came up to her after the group meal.

On Saturday morning Kara was nearly sick with nerves.

She knew there wasn’t anything riding on the relay races today, but Kara wanted to  _ win _ . She wanted her kids to have fun and she wanted to rub Lena Luthor’s nose in it. They met the other campers mid afternoon on the wide sweeping field next to the lake. It was almost comical how different the children looked from each other when they lined up by year. The MSCCY kids were in pristine uniforms of white, navy and green, and just  _ looked _ rich. Like they hadn’t had a single hard day in their lives. And then the Argo kids? Brightly colored clothes, tie dye, lanyard bracelets and scrunchies and tanned skin and scabby knees. The whistles started and the kids were off, running around the cones the counselors had set up in teams of six. There were more kids from the Argo side, and Kara directed them to either fill in the gaps on the MSCCY side or create their own teams. What better than to take the enemy down, than friendship?

It worked better that she had expected, and Kara watched some of the kids mingle after the races had been run with smiles and excited interactions over anything and everything. Even the older kids were playing nice. Argo had also won by two points. From across the field Kara picked out Lena Luthor on a lounge chair, a large beach umbrella shading her from the bright summer sun. Her rival raised her hand in a nonchalant wave and waggle of her fingers. After a moment of hesitation, Kara raised hers in return. But only for a moment, she didn’t want Lena to think she was getting too friendly.

A strange dance started.

About once a week Lena would drop by and harass Kara, always unannounced, always with her endlessly sharp tongue. But there were no more barbs hurled towards her family or the integrity of her employees. If anything, Lena Luthor simply made a trip just to waste her time and fight about absolutely nothing.

It drove Kara  _ bonkers _ .

But it also didn’t help that somehow, through their stupidly heated arguments over whether or not the sky was blue, was that it had started to feel like banter. Really  _ really _ tense banter. Banter that Kara thought about for hours after and realized that her more volatile feelings were fading as Lena dropped more of herself into Kara’s lap. Kara might have even started doing the same after Lena more or less admitted that her family could fuck off, they were causing as much harm to her as they were to everyone else around them. They both discovered that they were just trying to make a name for themselves out from under their family’s thumb.  _ That _ had been an awkward argument.

The next couple weeks dragged on and the competitions continued. By the fourth of July, colorful lanyard bracelets and bead necklaces had passed from the Argo kids to the MSCCY kids, and more friendships had formed between the groups. Kara even spotted a few budding romances between some of the oldest kids through shy smiles and showboat attitudes. Well. If it made the kids happy, then Kara was happy. On the holiday, she extended an olive branch and invited the MSCCY kids over for the day’s events. From water sports to field games and scavenger hunts to arts and crafts, finished with a big classic dinner of burgers and dogs with all the sides and fixings, and a bonfire by the lake with s'mores and fireworks, Kara watched over the wild mishmash of campers. It was beautifully chaotic.

On July 7th, Kara got a call from her bank.

All of the outstanding expenses she had been budgeting and the financial loan she had planned to take care of to try to update some of the older cabins over the winter… had been taken care of. By multiple donors. Each donation had been sent with a personal note for Kara, and each one had a similar message. This summer was the best their child had ever had, thanks to Kara Danvers and the kids of Argo opening up their camp to them. There were multiple stories of how their child had been so lonely, and now had so many new friends! How these new friends had made the MSCCY campers less standoffish and more open. Story after story of friendship and fun and  _ this is the camp I always wanted to go to when I was growing up _ . Kara cried from their kindness. Not because they had thrown oodles of money at her and Argo, even though it was a huge relief, but because there were tangible results that a gap was being bridged. It wasn’t until Kara was telling Nia about it the next morning that she was walloped over the head with the truth.

“Maybe if you stopped flirting so much with Lena Luthor, you would have seen what she was doing.”

Kara gawped as Nia unwrapped her mid-morning peanut butter sandwich.

“ _ W-what _ ?!”

“You heard me. I can’t be around you two! I’m afraid I’ll look over and you’ll be in the middle of ripping her clothes off.” She griped and took a large bite of her sandwich.

Kara felt like steam was pouring out of her ears. She hadn’t thought she was being so blatant about the feelings she was wrestling with. Truth be told, Kara had stopped hating Lena Luthor a long time ago. What was throwing her off now, was that she couldn’t pinpoint where that had turned into attraction. Kara panicked.

“Nia, don’t be ridiculous-“

“What’s ridiculous is how she stares at your ass when you stomp away.” Nia cut in with a mouthful of bread and peanut butter.

“I-“

“And don’t think I haven’t seen you looking at her boobs. Girl, you are  _ not _ subtle.”

Kara could only stare at Nia.

_ Oh god. She was attracted to Lena Luthor _ .

And people could  _ see it _ .

“Listen, you need to either let it go or fuck her because I can’t take much more of this awkward peacocking. I will literally scoops my eyeballs out with a spoon and flick them at you.” Nia waggled her half-eaten sandwich at Kara, threatening her with crumbs of white bread.

Kara’s face burned hotter. “ _ Nia _ !”

“Nope-I’ve said all I need too. I’m talking about this anymore, or I  _ will _ throw up on you. And that’s a promise.”

Kara stayed rooted on her perch as Nia slid off the top of the picnic table. “Tick tock, Kara.”

Next thing she knew, she had Lena on the phone and had barely gotten out her greeting when Lena cut her off about something or other with their usual banter. In a matter of moments Lena had distracted her from the purpose of their call and lured her into a mundane argument over the lock on the canoe shed office. Which then, twenty minutes later, had Kara huffing out to the shared dock where Lena was waiting for her as thunder rumbled overhead. In her too expensive clothes and too expensive perfume with a stupid expensive hairstyle. Kara leapt up onto the dock, a little out of breath and full of righteous fury.

“Miss _ Luthor _ .”

“Miss Danvers.”

Kara stared her down, ignoring how her hair was sticking to the back of her neck with sweat. The summer heat was oppressive. Kara didn’t understand how her rival looked so cool and unbothered.

“Why have you called me out here, Kara?” Lena Luthor asked, a slow smirk tugging at her deep burgundy lipstick.

Kara saw red.

“YOU CALLED  _ ME _ OUT HERE.”

“Oh I did? I was quite certain that you had. Something about the door lock-“

“ _ You- _ “

“-and how you were going to prove to me that your key works perfectly fine.”

“ _ Maybe _ if you wouldn’t get on my nerves all the time I wouldn’t feel like I need to defend myself!”

“So because I annoyed you, it’s my fault?” Lena crossed her arms, a scowl pulled the smirk off her face.

“I said what I said!” Kara snapped and jabbed a finger at her.

“I can’t  _ stand _ you and your heroic attitude and your  _ knock-off Farrah Fawcett hair _ !”

“Well I can’t stand  _ you _ and your Evil CEO wardrobe!”

“Chanel is  _ not _ Evil CEO-!”

“And my hair just  _ does _ this! It’s the humidity-!”

The sky opened in a deluge.

Lena swore colorfully next to her as they both threw their hands up in a futile attempt to shield their faces from the sudden heavy rain. Kara seized her by her bicep and tugged her along as she hurried to the tiny canoe shed office. Her hand slipped off the slick knob, the door locked, and Kara spat out a harsh curse as she fumbled for her keys. She found it on her key ring, jammed it into the lock, and shoved her way inside. Lena pushed in after her, her hands hot on her back through her soaked tank top. Kara let her slip past and then slammed the door shut.

The musty cabin was quiet except for the heavy sheets of rain beating against the low roof, a little radio quietly playing soft rock that someone had forgotten to turn off, and their shallow breathing. Lena’s hands were still hot on her back and Kara was very aware of how alone they were. How  _ close _ Lena was. How her annoyance-induced agitation had plunged low into her hips and crackled underneath her skin in the distracting heat of attraction. Lena didn’t take her hands back. Kara let her forehead thump to the old wooden door in a last ditch effort to snap herself out of the strengthening swirl of desire in her chest. Lena’s hands flinched against her soaking wet tank top, as if silently asking her to be careful.

Nia had been right. And it was the last straw.

“Awe,  _ hell _ -“

Kara twisted, Lena’s hands slid around her ribs, and Kara kissed her.

Kissed her firm enough her nose pressed into Lena’s cheek and for there to be a zing of discomfort in her lip from her own teeth. Lena’s reaction was immediate. She kissed Kara back just as hard, her hands pulling her in and greedily splaying across her back. Every little thing that they had stamped down underneath their rivalry came roaring back to the surface, hot and demanding through greedy reaching hands and heavy kisses that robbed Kara of her breath in moments. She hissed through a rough nip to her lip as Lena drew her closer with her hands in her hair, egging her on to just keep kissing her. Keep touching her. Kara tugged at her silk blouse, the fabric heavy against her fingers as she started walking Lena back towards the tiny desk. She wanted to touch more of her,  _ all _ of her if she would let her.

Lena gasped against her mouth when Kara finally worked her shirt free of the high waist of her skirt and pressed her hands flat to her skin. She was so warm and  _ so _ soft. Kara couldn’t touch enough of her. Lena did something with her tongue that made her pulse race and beat heavily in between her legs. Everything sped up and Lena’s hands fisted in her hair when Kara backed her up against the desk. With one broad sweep of her arm, Kara cleared the surface with a loud crash and lifted Lena up onto it. Long fingers drug roughly down her back as she hastily unbuttoned her blouse, still holding onto a shred of her common sense not to tear a top that probably cost more than three months of mortgage. As soon as the last button slipped free Kara pushed her down onto her back, crawling up onto the desk with her and straddling one of her legs.

Lena’s hands peeled her shirt up her back, panting into Kara’s mouth as her skirt was rucked up to her waist. She wrestled the thin wet shirt over her head impatiently and Kara barely heard her soaked tank hit the floor with a wet  _ splap _ . Kara was too engrossed in the sudden warmth that came with pressing her bare thigh into the apex between Lena’s legs. Thunder rumbled overhead, the radio continued to play, and Lena sighed a soft moan as she rolled her hips and ground against Kara’s skin. The sound sent a tingling shiver down Kara’s spine and she pressed her thigh more firmly into her, trying to find a better way to arrange herself on the tiny desk. Their touches grew a little more impatient as the thunder cracked above the lake. Kara tried to find a rhythm but she couldn’t get the leverage she needed, and she could tell that Lena was getting frustrated by the way her hips were rolling into her.

Kara braced herself on her elbow and slipped her hand low in between them.

Lena’s moan vibrated against her lips, low and toe-curlingly dirty as Kara cupped her over her underwear. Her hips pressed up into her hand, looking for friction as Lena snuck her own hands into the front waistband of Kara’s cutoffs. The sensation of Lena’s fingers shifting against her abdomen as she unbuttoned her shorts made her breath hitch in her chest. Heat blossomed in a heavy swirl and the still air in the little office felt cozier with the summer storm raging outside. With her heart in her throat and her nerves a wild mix of arousal and jitters, Kara tentatively pulled Lena’s underwear to the side and gently stroked her fingers through her.

“ _ Yesssssss… _ ” Lena hissed before drawing her back into a searing kiss and pressing herself up into Kara’s fingers.

She was warm and slick and so  _ soft _ . Kara couldn’t believe how good she felt and her brain short circuited. Bolstered by Lena’s positive reception she started exploring, blindly feeling her out as Lena’s hands tugged her shorts open with a jerk. Her fingertips smoothed slickly over the firm little bundle of nerves at the top of Lena’s sex and Kara had to scramble and grab at the edge of the desk next to their heads when her hips jerked up into her. A hand slid down into her underwear and stroked through her, the sudden bloom of pleasure catching her off guard. Kara moaned and rolled her hips down into the fingers that had quickly found her clit. It took all of her focus to slide down through slick heat and rub at the delicately soft folds leading to Lena’s core.

Kara languidly eased in two fingers with care, swallowing Lena’s loud moan as she stretched around her fingers. She felt  _ incredible _ around her. Molten silk. The fingers on her clit swiped sloppily and Kara’s hips jumped in response, pleasure crackling out through her veins from the stimulation. She took it as direction and withdrew with a firm curl, dragging the pads of her fingers against her in a heavy stroke. Lena moaned high and feminine in her chest, chasing after her with her hips. Kara mouthed sloppy kisses over her jaw and neck, finally finding a steady rhythm with her hand.

Their coupling shifted from nearly frantic to something hot and so intense Kara felt like she was going to combust. After a few long moments of building heat and greedy touches and kisses, Lena was so wet Kara kept her thumb on her clit so she wouldn’t float away. The muscles in her forearm burned and her thighs were shaking with the effort to stay hovering over Lena as fingers worked tight quick circles on her clit. Kara could hear her moans climbing higher in pitch as she started to tense underneath her. Every pass of Lena’s fingers over her made the knot in her hips pull tighter in a crackle of energy. She was almost uncomfortably wet and wished the angle wasn’t so awkward so she could feel Lena inside her.

“ _ Kara _ -“

Lena’s breath grew more shallow and Kara kissed her, working her hand a little bit firmer and stroking her thumb over her clit a little bit heavier until finally. Finally. Lena came in a breathlessly soft cry, squeezing hot and tight around her fingers in deliciously rhythmic flutters. Her clit was firm against her thumb and pulsed in time with the greedy contractions trying to pull Kara in deeper. Kara wasn’t very religious, but Lena was an altar she would be happy to worship at.

It took Lena a long moment to ride out the high of her orgasm, something that Kara smugly tried to prolong with a clever hand and sucking kisses. When she started to come back down, her fingers started working over Kara’s clit with renewed vigor. Quickly pushing her up up up at a dizzying pace until it was Kara’s turn to lose her senses and fall into a pool of golden pleasure, grinding her hips mindlessly down into Lena’s hand as her mouth fell open in an  _ Oh _ against her cheek.

Their hands gradually eased and Kara sagged clumsily onto Lena, greedily relishing the feel of her skin against hers. She accepted the lazy languid kiss and sighed when Lena’s free hand combed through her wild hair. Kara kissed her and kissed her, slowly telling her through touch that she was done being rivals. Lena accepted each one without hesitation.

“I’m glad you finally figured me out. You should know that Farrah Fawcett hair is a compliment.” Lena finally mumbled against her lips.

Kara grinned and tugged playfully at Lena’s lip with her teeth. “Sorry I took so long… I’ve always thought your designer chic profile was sexy.”

A laugh vibrated through Lena’s chest and she slid her hand a little bit lower in Kara’s shorts. “You should move up a little bit. I think you’re still a little tense from our stupid argument.”

Kara wriggled up a few inches, her hiking boot squeaking against the edge of the desk. “I think there’s a blanket in here, we can lay on the floor?”

“Oh?” Lena slipped two fingers into her with her infamous wolfish grin. “Would you like to stop and find one?”

Kara’s eyes rolled shut as her fingers pulled a streak of pleasure through her, coiling up low in her belly. She could only whine in response as Lena pressed hot kisses to her face, leading her up again, sailing in a loop and well on her way to another release.

The thunder rumbled and the rain poured, and Kara’s breathless moans sighed along to Berlin on the radio.


	32. I Wanna Take You To A Gay Bar

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Kara and Lena are tired after a long day of superheroing and ceo-ing and Lena convinces Kara to go to a lesbian bar with her to unwind, supersuit and all

“Let’s go out for a drink.”

Kara blinked sleepily and picked her head up from the back of the white leather couch in Lena’s office. “Right now?”

Lena shrugged, her shoulder shifting against Kara’s chest and rolled her head to the side to bump against her chin.

“Why not?

“It’s…” Kara looked around for a clock. “...late?”

“Not terribly.”

“I’m still in my suit.”

“It’ll take the eyes of the crowd off me.” Lena teased and wriggled around into Kara, grinning broadly. “All the ladies will see is your dashing visage.”

“Wait so you wanna go… where?”

“Gay bar. Lesbian bar. Whatever. Somewhere with a lot of queer people.”

“You wanna go to a gay bar right now.”

“Yes.”

“With me in my suit.”

“Also yes.”

Kara turned her face to look down at Lena. “You just want a bodyguard, don’t you?”

“Maybe I just want to oogle you in your suit under obnoxious neon lights.”

“ _ Now _ this is starting to sound like you wanna go dancing in a gay  _ club _ .”

“Would you be opposed?” Lena arched a brow.

Kara arched hers back. “Lena Luthor is publicly dating Kara Danvers, not Supergirl.”

Lena almost rolled her eyes, but instead she shifted up into a more upright position and encroached into Kara’s space. Her grin faded and white teeth bit blood red as her eyes dropped to Kara’s lips. Warm fingers curled her hair behind her ear and smoothed down to ghost over her pulse point.

“How about a trade?”

Both of Kara’s brows arched. Lena leaned in close, her nose trailed across her cheekbone. “Come dancing with me, get a drink, have a fun time for an hour or so. And then you can take me home and…”

Lena listed out some very explicit and knee-buckling suggestions.

Kara’s face went fire truck red in point-two-seven seconds.

“Um.”

Lena’s grin turned wolfish as Kara’s hands started creeping around her girlfriend’s waist. “How does that sound?”

“Are you sure we can’t just leave and go straight to that?”

“And ruin the anticipation? I’m trying to play the long game here, Miss Danvers.” She teased and slipped off the couch, leaving an extremely flustered Kara frozen on the cushions.

She clicked away back to her desk. “Think about it, darling. I’ll be ready to leave soon.”

Kara watched her walk away, her eyes locked on her hips. It wasn’t often Lena pulled out the big guns, but when she did? Kara sighed and sent a text off to Alex.

_ Ignore any Supergirl pap photos that may pop up within the next few hours. _

The following morning with her ears still ringing from Alex chewing her out for a solid half hour, Kara slipped into CatCo and made a beeline to her office. She could feel the eyes on her back, pitying her for a complete misunderstanding that she couldn’t clear up. However, she and Lena had a contingency plan. And Kara was certain that she was finally going to have to use it after a year and a half of keeping it in her back pocket. She had  _ almost _ made it to her office when a handful of employees pulled her aside. Behind them she could see Nia at her desk trying and failing spectacularly to hide a laugh.

“Kara? I’m so,  _ so _ sorry-”

“If there’s anything we can do-”

“We’re here for you-”

On and on they went, trying to console her, taking her silence as sadness. Finally, she had to cut them short when she saw Nia clap her hand over her mouth.

“I’m sorry, but I’m a little confused?”

An awkward silence blanketed the area as people paused to listen. One of her coworkers swallowed nervously and gently continued.

“There are pictures of Lena with Supergirl. From last night. We think she’s cheating on you.”

_ Showtime _ .

Kara let her brows rise and her mouth open in a surprised  _ oh _ … and then slowly let it morph into what could only be described as a cocky, smug grin.

“Cheating? Have you  _ seen _ Supergirl?”

Her coworkers stared at her, mouths open with surprise. Kara shrugged a shoulder and borrowed Lena’s patented haughty brow raise.

“Why do you think I work out so much? I have to be able to keep up.”

Kara slipped by them into her office with a pleased smirk as Nia finally lost her shit.


	33. Off World Piercing Parlor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: i know there have been several 'what if lena had piercings' fics but ....... what if kara had piercings?

Lena didn’t think much of Kara’s comment,  _ I didn’t realize you had so many ear piercings _ . She was in the middle of destroying Winn and Sam at Monopoly, so she just mumbled something about late stage teenage rebellion and cleaned Alex out of the game when she landed on her hotel at Park Place.

A few months passed by and Kara took an impromptu vacation for her mental health. That’s… what the world at large knows. What they don’t know, is that Kara- _ Supergirl _ -had been abducted off world. It’s a harrowing three months of no contact and fruitless unanswered messages, but a gnarly ship looking like it crawled out of a Mad Max movie touched down just for a moment on the DEO’s helipad to drop off a grunged-up Supergirl. Kara was fine, and sheepishly admitted that she could have gotten back within a couple hours but she felt compelled to help bring the slave ring she had tumbled into to its knees… it just took a little longer than she thought and she couldn’t get a message frequency to go far enough to Earth. It’s in the middle of all of them chewing her out in the DEO board room that Lena realized she had a second pair of new black studs in her ears.

Lena mentioned the new piercings at their first brunch after her return, and Kara blushed through a shy squinty smile.

“I’ve always kinda wanted some more, but it’s nearly impossible if I’m on earth because-” She flapped her hand at the clear sunny sky. “-well, you know. But at least they healed super fast!”

Lena rolled her eyes.

* * *

It’s nearly four months later that Lena learns Kara left in the middle of the night to run an emergency errand off-world for Clark. She’s annoyed, but she understood why the new father was hesitant to leave Lois and his new baby, Jon. Still, Lena would have liked a heads up from Kara and not the overly factual voicemail she received from Querl Dox. Kara’s only gone a week this time,  _ and _ within transmission range, so she isn’t terribly worried. When she glides back into the hangar with a sunny smile, she’s got a new interesting satchel slung across her chest and some sleek armored bracers on her forearms. Kara also brought plenty of interesting little gifts for everyone and a report that Earth may have just gained some new allies. Lena had just parted from a soul-healing hug when she spotted a new silvery-blue piece of metal hidden on the inside of her left ear. Lena couldn’t help but reach up and press her finger tips into the corner of her jaw to turn her head a little more.

“I had a conch piercing.”

Kara blushed again. “I know. Sometimes if the light is right I can see where it used to be.”

“Are you trying to catch up to me?” She teased, finally pulling her hand back.

“N-no. But maybe I’ll get one or two more.” Kara’s face rivaled a fire hydrant.

Lena quirked her brow and finally stepped out of her space, trying not to think about how attractive the extra adornments looked on her best friend.

Kara became not just Earth’s Hero after that, but also Earth’s Ambassador. She left about once a month, only on the weekends or Snapper Carr would have her hide, taking tidings of good will from the UN and World Powers to the new Planet she had helped secure for Clark. After a couple visits her uniform of red and blue was traded for one of deep navy with gold trimmings, silvery shoulder pauldrons and grieves to match her gauntlets, a sweeping deep red cape, and her chest sporting an embroidered puslar map in silver. She looked incredibly handsome and Lena slipped and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek before she left on assignment. Kara left, fire truck red, and Lena hurried out of the DEO in her panic.

* * *

There was a tiny ring of gold on the left side of Kara’s nose, looping through her nostril. She hadn’t noticed it was there until she turned her head and the sun caught it, glimmering against her tanned freckled skin and soft looping blonde curls. Lena didn’t realize she was staring until Kara blushed prettily and brushed her fingers over her knuckles.

“What is it?”

“I think you’re just missing a surfboard and a halter top at this point.” Tumbled out of her mouth as she continued to stare at her nose. “You make me feel like I should put the rest of my piercings back in.”

“So… why not then?”

Heat poured down Lena’s spine like thick honey at the heavily flirty tone of Kara’s response. When she finally wrenched her attention away from that distracting little loop of gold it was her turn to blush under the intense look she was pinned under.

“I don’t think my Board of Directors would appreciate the tongue piercing.”

Kara choked on her spit.

* * *

Lena waited patiently for Kara as she traveled a few more times, each time a little more nerve wracking than the last, but she decided that’s sort of what happens when you start to fall in love with your best friend. Your worry increases exponentially. And your hugs last longer. Linger longer. The kisses of greeting and goodbye creep closer to the corner of the mouth. It was a twisting dance around the other and one that they were both enjoying, but afraid to break the spell of. It had been another couple months since the nose ring, just over a year since Kara’s off-world vigilante stint that set off Lena’s careful cataloging of her new piercings. But there were no new piercings that Lena could see.

She couldn’t help but be suspicious.

But she didn’t say anything. Or she  _ tried _ not to. Kara  _ definitely _ caught her staring a couple times. The more she was caught, the less Lena cared, until finally one evening after a late dinner in her L-Corp office, she finally broke.

“So… I haven’t seen any new additions to your ears.”

Kara froze for just a moment next to her, and then carefully started unlatching her cape.

“I did get one more.”

Lena could feel the heat creeping up her neck when Kara turned into her, eyes dark and cheeks dusted pink.

“Would you like to see it?”

The room was still and Lena felt as if she were about to burst into a smoldering pile of coals.  _ This _ was the moment that she had been waiting for.

Lena curled her fingers into the neckline of Kara’s techy blue suit and started tugging her closer, her breath hitching as a warm hand smoothed heavily up her thigh and-

“If you show me yours, I’ll show you mine.”

  
Kara’s  _ deal _ was lost in a kiss.


	34. Press Y To Honk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im SO sorry
> 
> when the discord is sad and needs something fun in the wake of a mess of an episode

The problem with being married to the CEO of a multi-billion conglomerate was that Kara often had to deal with her cancelling last minute lazy days at home to go put out some kind of fire. Not that she had a leg to stand on, being Superwoman and Earth’s front line of defense. With their powers combined, it left them missing each other desperately and feeling more than a little stressed out that they had been starved of some more  _ intimate _ activities. She wanted to fuck her wife,  _ dammit _ . Kara wished she could just selfishly pause the world for a day and blow off all of the steam she could manage without either of them passing out from exhaustion and dehydration. She wanted to feel good and she wanted Lena to feel even better. They deserved it. It had been a a couple weeks and that was  _ way _ too long. She texted Lena.

_ When can I hope to see you tonight? _

.

.

.

_ I don’t know. I’m sorry, darling. _

Kara sighed and typed out another text.

_ It’s okay, I just really miss you. I’m sorry that I got pulled away the other day, I wanted to make it up to you for the week before… tonight. Did that make sense…  _

Lena answered a moment later.

_ It did, and I know, I’m sorry. If I get a lull, I’ll text you. But it looks like for now I won’t be home til later. _

Kara flopped sideways into the cushions of the couch.

_ Okay. I love you. _

Lena responded immediately with an  _ I love you too _ and then Kara didn’t get another text for hours. She cleaned the house, did the bills, and even managed to run three loads of laundry. Kara was in the process of putting together an updated grocery list and thinking about what to eat for dinner when her phone chimed a text message. She scooped it up, and with a surge of jittery energy launched into the bedroom.

_ I have 45 minutes, bring something fun _ .

Kara didn’t even look at what she picked up, just that it was the strap-on harness she favored and something really brightly colored. That would do. She leapt into the sky, not even bothering to change into her suit, and was thumping down on Lena’s office balcony, just as she heard her wife tell Jess,  _ Please do not disturb me under any circumstances, and wear your earbuds I’m SO sorry _ . Lena had just closed and locked the frosted glass door to her office as Kara slipped into the room. Her wife held a finger to her lips in a hushing motion, and pointed to the small en suite with a wild look in her eyes. The heat of arousal coiled rapidly in Kara’s hips at the the raw attraction and eagerly followed her, knowing full and well that Lena was aching to be touched. If her expression hadn’t given it away… Kara flushed after a deep inhale.

“ _ Rao, Lena, I can smell you. _ ”

Her wife paused at the door way to the bathroom, and grabbed Kara by the front of her t-shirt. Kara let her bodily pull her into the dim room and into an open mouthed kiss that set her on fire. Everything became a blur of heady kisses, heavy touches, and Kara ripping the new toy out of the packaging. She washed it quickly as Lena all but tore her pants off and hopped up onto the counter with the skirt of her dress up around her waist, her underwear twisted around her ankle. Kara was into the harness in a heart beat, arousal slick between her legs as she cinched the buckles tight against the weight of the obnoxiously fluorescent silicone. Lena scrabbled for her, pulling her in with her hands and hooking her feet around her hips.

Kara wrapped one arm around her waist and cupped her greedily with her free hand, gasping against her wife’s mouth as she felt how wet she was. She stroked through her a few times, swallowing each quiet moan with a kiss, and generously spread the slick on the silicone strapped to her hips. With the tips of her fingers, Kara guided herself into slick heat with a slow steady thrust. Lena’s pleased hum was interrupted by another sound-

_ Hhhhhoooonk _ .

Kara froze.

They both looked down in between them. Lena started whispering furiously, her face redder than Kara’s cape.

“ _ Kara, are you fucking kidding me- _ ”

“ _ I-I didn’t know! I just grabbed something- _ ”

“ _ Did you seriously grab a dildo that fucking HONKS- _ ”

“ _ Where the fuck did we even get this, was this a gag gift- _ ”

“ _ What the FUCK Jess is going to he-hear… _ ”

Lena trailed off breathlessly as Kara withdrew and thrust back in firmly with another quiet  _ hhhhhhoooooonk _ . She paused, bottomed out inside her wife and waiting for a reaction. Lena gasped for breath against her, hands digging into her shoulders. Kara waited.

Waited…

.

.

.

“ _ Oh fuck me already-” _

Kara cursed colorfully under her breath and with drew with a soft  _ eeeeee _ sound, and started a furious pace.

She made it a grand total of six thrusts before she started losing it, pressing her mouth into the crook of Lena’s neck to try to stifle her laughed at the  _ honk honk honk _ that was pairing with the slick sounds of her trying to fuck her wife. Kara kept at it, trying not to stop, but eventually Lena started shaking against her, and then laughed breathlessly at one particularly loud  _ HONK _ . Kara laughed loudly into Lena’s neck, only pausing when she couldn’t breathe.

“ _ Nooooo, please- _ ” Lena begged, rolling her hips and belted out her own laugh as the movement elicited another  _ hhhonk _ .

Kara  _ tried _ .

_ So _ hard.

And eventually, far too giddily, she pulled Lena up and into her first orgasm, silicone slipping honkily in and out of her. Lena laughed breathlessly through her moans, pressing her burning face into Kara’s neck. When she caught her breath, Lena mumbled,

“Good thing you don’t have one of those little flower pins that squirt, I would have slapped you for that one.”

Kara laughed freely, hiding her face in her wife’s neck. A moment later Lena checked her watch.

“I still have another thirty five minutes.”

  
Kara stifled a giggle, feeling a  _ lot _ better, and rolled her hips.

.

.

.

_ Hhhhhhonk. _


	35. Beachside

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: au where Kara and lena never met and years after lex dies and the luthor name is restored, lena moves to a small beach town where she intends to leave behind the Luthor name for good and live a quiet life alone in a quiet town. But there she meets Kara Danvers, her contractor who quickly becomes her friend and as they grow closer she learns that her only friend is also supergirl, the fallen hero who to the world “died” defeating Lex, but is really alive and powerless and also trying to heal
> 
> oof i wish i had the time to turn this into a full story
> 
> *there are probably typos, sorry lol  
**I know nothing about contracting or historical residencies I’m just here to have fun

Lena sat down with a quiet groan on the top step of her new front porch. The new front porch of her new house.

In Midvale.

She rolled her neck around to try and loosen the muscles at the top of her shoulders and tried not to get pissed off that her contractor had just up and left the little town for National City. She was Lena Luthor. She didn’t get dropped as a client,  _ she _ did the dropping. Or, at least she used to do the dropping. Lena heaved herself to her feet and decided she needed to get away from her new home for a little bit. Just to run some errands. Like a  _ normal _ person.

It was really nice, actually. The solitude. Learning all of those adult things she always had other people do for her. She still had her clothes tailored and took advantage of the online grocery shopping, but she got to drive more and she got to hide in plain sight. She got to wear  _ jeans _ and  _ comfy sweaters _ in  _ public _ . Lillian was surely shriveling in her cushy high security prison. Lena hoped she shriveled into a raisin.

The drive into town was quick and Lena kept the windows down, enjoying the warm sea breeze of late spring and made a note on her phone to pick up some more sun screen. She parked in a little lot off main street and walked in a loop, starting down at the post office two blocks away and working her way back. Her last stop was the general store and the bells on the door jangled as she pushed it open. There were a few other shoppers that afternoon and she methodically filled her little plastic basket with odds and ends she had run out of and splurged on a candy bar. That was another thing she had come to love. Eating a candy bar without having to worry about how it would be twisted by the media or how her former, brutish personal trainer would make her do five extra sets of reps to make sure that one measly candy bar didn’t affect the fit of her perfectly tailored designer dresses.

Lena didn’t miss those grueling workouts at all. Now she got her exercise by doing yoga at the local YWCA and walks on the beach.

“Doctor Kieran, how’re you today?”

Lena blinked and realized she was next in line at the lone cashier’s station. She slapped a polite smile on and lifted her basket up onto the counter.

“Hello Gerald, I’m well.”

The grizzled man with a full salt and pepper beard raised a bushy brow in a no-nonsense matter of fact manner. “That frown you had tells me you’re lyin’.”

Lena blinked. She was still getting used to people speaking candidly to her. However, it was just a different way of networking. She could network.

“Oh, well… you wouldn’t happen to know of a reliable contractor in town, would you?”

Gerald pursed his lips with a ruffle of his mustache and started ringing up her purchases. “I heard Susanna up and left. Right unprofessional if you ask me. Well,” He sighed. “-I’ve always really liked Danvers and Schott. Reliable, good solid work, have always worked well with other businesses here in town but a little slow for a three person team. Had I known you were gonna get stranded, I would’ve pushed you their way first. They renovated and repaired my shop front a few years ago when a typhoon hit us.”

He pulled a pad of paper over as Lena swiped her card on the electronic till and scribbled a phone number.

“Far as I know they’ll be top pick in the town now, so I’d call soon.” He tore off the slip and slid it to Lena with her receipt, then began bagging her purchases in the canvas bag she had brought with her.

Lena checked behind her and realized no one was immediately waiting to be checked out and turned back towards Gerald, trying to keep her overbearing business brain at bay.

“What can you tell me about them?”

The man leaned on the counter and laced his callused hands together with another ruffle of his mustache. “Good honest people. They do have some historical certifications so that’ll help you. One of ‘em, Winn, is a tech guy and can rewire a small house in just a little over a day. Alex, one of the sisters, she used to be a heart surgeon up in National City and got burned out. She’s the shrewd one for business. And Kara, bless her, that kid has had a rough time. Had a bad accident a little over ten years ago in Metropolis and decided that she was just gonna live a quiet life and enjoy what she could. Great eye for color and I don’t know how she does it, but she can identify structural weaknesses just by lookin’ at a building.”

Gerald frowned and his eyes dropped. “They’ve only ever been kind and try to help out the best they can around town. It’s nice to have some young kids like them back in Midvale. They even started one of those gay people groups.”

Lena tried not to pull a face, and felt herself start to clam up. “I assume that’s a problem for some?”

The man shrugged and his voice grew gentle. “Not for me, I think it’s good. Lotta people here think it’s good. It’s good for my grandson too, makes him happy. So how could I see that as a bad thing? Plus-” He raised a bushy brow at her conspiratorially. “-for as much as he jokes about being bad at math, my grandson and his gay friends are some of the smartest kids I know.”

“Not that you’re biased.” Lena offered, relaxing enough to smile.

Gerald laughed deep in his chest and straightened back up as the bells on the door jangled again. “Naw, I keep my biases to a minimum.” He winked, and Lena wished that she had someone like Gerald growing up.

“Thank you for the information, Gerald.”

“Don’t be gone too long, Dr. Kieran. I always feel a little smarter when you stop by.”

Lena shouldered her bag with a final farewell and wandered back out into the sunlight with the Danvers and Schott phone number in her hand.

* * *

The following morning a bright red pickup truck rolled to a stop in front of her house.

Lena smoothed the front of her button up and made her way to the front door after double checking all of her current documents were accounted for on her kitchen table. Someone rang the simple doorbell and she pulled the door open, coming face to face with a woman close to her age with a shaved undercut and sharp dark eyes.

“Dr. Kieran? Alex Danvers.”

Lena shook her hand, noting the strength in her grip. “Thank you for agreeing to meet with me so soon-”

The truck door slammed behind them and Lena looked past Alex Danvers, watching another woman jog up the walk with a satchel over her shoulder. She was tall and strong looking, and her nerdy tortoise shell glasses were an interesting contrast.

“Hi! I’m Kara.” Lena pivoted as Alex slid to the side to make room and shook her hand as well. “I’m sorry Winn couldn’t be here today, but I can fill in for him.”

“No problem at all! Please, come in.”

The sisters filed in and got straight to work, reviewing the house blueprints and what the previous contractor had completed for Lena before leaving. Next came the inspections, documentation, and rough planning and scheduling which took a greater part of the day, pausing only for a quick lunch break. Turns out that while both of the Danvers sisters were well mannered and smart, Kara was  _ definitely _ a people-person compared to both her and her sister Alex. She didn’t lose momentum the entire day, stayed up beat and sunny, cracked nerdy jokes,  _ and _ … if Lena had to admit, was quite attractive. Kara Danvers moved with an effortless self-assuredness, fluid and light as if she were walking on glass. Everything lifted was a measure of strength and control as if she weren’t sure how strong she was.  _ Careful _ . Unconsciously so. It was strange and intriguing to watch.

“Okie doke, I think this will be enough for now. What do you think Alex?”

“Did you take pictures of the eaves on the west wall?”

“Yeah, they didn’t look as bad as I thought they would.”

“Then I’d say we’re set for now.” Alex Danvers shrugged and started packing her materials away.

“Cool. Okay, so, we’ll take a day or so to look over everything and get you a series of estimates and scheduling.” Kara Danvers turned back to Lena, a bounce still in her step. “Good news is your home has good bones and Suzannah didn’t leave you completely in the hole, so you can continue to live here during the renovations if you want. Most people tend to stay with friends and family, but I have a feeling it’s just you out here.”

She finished speaking in a gentle tone. Not in a pitying manner, but one that told Lena that Kara understood something about her situation even though she hadn’t said a word.

“It’s just me.”

Kara nodded. “Gotcha. We’ll account for that in the scheduling. And make sure we aren’t working on the roof during typhoon season.”

“I appreciate the thoughtfulness.” Lena grinned in response to Kara Danvers’s dorky uneven shoulder shrug.

“We would love to have you as a client, Dr. Kieran.” Alex sidled up to them, a hopeful look in her eye.

Lena almost told her that she had been sold since their lunch. “I would be honored.”

Sunny energy rolled off of Kara in waves and her polite grin stretched into a full-blown scrunchy-eyed sunny smile. Lena walked them out of her home with a few more parting words of business talk and bid the sisters farewell. She had a feeling her life was going to get a lot more lively.

* * *

She was absolutely right.

The following week after a flurry of contracts were signed and budgets and schedules were approved, Danvers and Schott got to work on her home. She finally met the missing third of the group and decided that she immediately liked him, and ended up walking around the house with him talking about the use of artificial nerve transplants for newly engineered prosthetics as he started mapping out the wiring that hadn’t been repaired. Eventually he started asking questions that veered a little too close to what she used to do, what she was  _ supposed _ to be keeping private to start her new life, and begged off an excuse to leave him to his work. She hadn’t missed his curious glance in the reflection of the hall mirror.

So the long process of finishing the work on her house began.

Thankfully, the master bed and bath and the kitchen had been the first rooms mostly completed along with other major essential amenities. Now it was just adjusting those, the rest of the interior, and repairs to the exterior all while maintaining their work to the special historical residency guidelines. Lena got used to hearing the tires of the jouncy red pickup grind to a halt in front of her house a couple days a week. She got used to listening to music she never had the time for with a new pair of headphones to ignore the whine of the drill. Her knowledge of the inner workings of an old house grew to an exponential amount and she started wandering into blogs and youtube channels about historical restorations of all cultures. When she wasn’t watching a man refurbish an old Japanese home, she was working on her theoretical research. She  _ did _ want to turn the basement into a proper laboratory, or build a second structure on the back of her property, but that would have to wait until the house was finished. Lena hadn’t even brought it up with Kara Danvers yet, but she figured that she should soon enough.

For now, her renovations, her laptop, and her daily beach walks would have to keep her busy.

* * *

“-no, it’s okay. Do what you think is best.”

Lena paused, leaning on the doorframe as she waited for her kettle to come to a boil.

“ _ But it’s YOUR company, I want to know what you think I should do _ .”

“Just because I’m a major shareholder doesn’t mean you should bow to my every whim, Sam.”

“ _ Isn’t that how business works? _ ”

Lena clicked her tongue in annoyance. “You know you can always pull my name out if they start giving you too much trouble.”

“ _ I know, but pulling the Mom Card is a little low, don’t you think _ ?”

“Considering you’re a mom, I’d say it’s the logical response. But I have a feeling you weren’t just calling me about annoying board members?” Lena shuffled into the kitchen when the olive green teapot started to whistle.

“ _ I… I’m worried. About you. _ ”

“Worried?” Lena mused, pouring the steaming water into her mug.

“ _ You’ve just dropped off the face of the earth, how could I not be worried _ ? _ You did so much, accomplished so much, were on top of headlines nearly every week, and now? Now it’s like someone just swept you away. _ ”

She didn’t exactly know what to say to that and took a moment to doctor her drink.

“I’m done with all of that, Sam. I did what I could as a figurehead, now I want to focus on what  _ I _ want to do. Help people in a way that  _ I _ want to. Preferably in the comfort of shadow, away from the press.”

“ _ They’ll find you eventually _ .”

“Yes, well. I think I have enough pull with Superman now that I can request a restraining order of ten miles.”

Sam laughed on the other end of the line. “ _ Probably. I guess that counts since you’re weirdly friends now _ .”

“That’s not weird… is it? Whatever. The point is, my  _ name _ may not be in the news all the time, but L-Corp still is. And now you are. L-Corp’s mission is still being pursued, and goals are still being reached. That’s more important than a Luthor’s name in the newspaper.”

“ _ You know that’s not what I meant. Don’t play stupid _ .”

Lena huffed. “I know  _ that _ . But the greater public gets stuck on information like that.”

“ _ Yeah yeah, reading and comprehension is at an all-time-low. _ ” Sam humored her. “ _ But it’s been almost a year. Maybe you could swing back to Metropolis next month? Let the world know you aren’t dead? L-Corp is having our annual Summer Gala on the twenty-fifth _ .”

“Sam…”

“ _ Just think about it? _ ”

“I promise I’ll  _ think _ about it.”

“ _ Good _ .”

Sam was silent for a long moment.

“ _ How are you? Really? _ ”

Lena picked her tea up and settled into the little arm chair nook in the corner of the kitchen with a sigh.

“Tired. But better. My doctor says my blood pressure is much lower.”

“ _ Lena…” _

“I’m okay. I needed to leave, I don’t know how much longer I would have lasted.”

“ _ If you ever want to come back… _ ”

“I’ll insist upon being a lab grunt.”

“ _ Lena- _ “

“Yes I will. If I do come back, I  _ will _ be in the labs.”

“ _ Hey _ -“

“Cleaning test tubes, sequencing genomes-“

“ _ Le- _ “

“Dissecting mealy worms-“

“ _ OKAY FINE! _ ”

Lena cracked a smile as Sam huffed a laugh at her.

“ _ You can be the queen of the lab grunts. If you ever get bored out there. _ ”

“Oh I don’t know. It’s pretty nice out here. And the contractor's cute.”

Sam hummed in interest. “ _ Do tell. Him?” _

Lena couldn’t help but blush. “Her.”

“ _ Ohh. Care to introduce me? _ ”

“What are we, sixteen?” She laughed and blew across her tea.

“ _ Considering I was well on my way to getting screwed up and you were in college… humor me? Please. I don’t want to go back to my paperwork yet. _ ”

Lena grinned and snuggled down into her seat.

“Okay, well. Her name is Kara…”

* * *

“Hey, Dr. Kieran?”

“Hey, Miss Danvers?” Lena echoed from inside the storage pod parked in the driveway.

“Har har. We’re going to start on laying the tile in the hall bath. If you have anything heavy in there you need carried just let us know.”

Lena looked up from the bin she was digging in and found Kara Danvers leaning against the front of the structure, golden sunlight following the curve of her tanned broad shoulders. About three months had passed since she hired Danvers and Schott and now Lena looked forward to seeing the jouncy red pick up truck every week. Never had she made friends so quickly. She had tried her best to stay professionally aloof, but that failed spectacularly by week five. The concept of true friendship had always been a little difficult for her to wrap her head around, excluding the handful of people who had managed to coax her into a friendship. Like Sam. But now, quite suddenly, she had three new friends who didn’t care she was apparently a doctor of something they couldn’t wrap their head around, and liked her for just…  _ her _ . Without even knowing her. Which, Lena decided, was the best perk of hiding away her last name. It  _ did _ make her dread the possibility of them finding out, and she had started to try to think of ways to test the waters. Try to find out what they thought of one of America’s most influential families on both ends of the good and bad spectrum.

She hadn’t quite figured it out yet.

“I didn’t know you knew how to tile a bathroom.” She said instead, quirking a brow at the contractor.

“I have many skills, Dr. Kieran. Sometimes I have to step in on some jobs, but I promise I’ve got the training and have been doing this for years  _ and _ I can do just as good a job as Hewette.”

Kara fell victim to her rambling tendencies to prove her worth and Lena couldn’t help but bite back a grin. She was glad to have Kara as a friend. She wouldn’t be glad to  _ keep _ her as a friend for a long time. But she also was incredibly cute when Lena got her to blush.

“Oh I have  _ no _ doubt in your skills, Miss Danvers.”

Kara’s face flushed as red as their pick up truck and Winn cackled from outside the pod. He walked by carrying a tool box and bucket, grinning like a proud  _ bro _ .

“Nice.”

He snickered and kept walking up and into the house, ignoring Kara’s spluttering. Lena watched her gape for a moment, arms akimbo, as she tried  _ very _ hard not to burst into laughter. Kara pointed loosely towards the house, a pretty pink blush still coloring her face.

“Erm. Dr. Kieran.”

“Miss Danvers.”

Kara retreated into the house and Lena allowed herself a moment of pleased laughter.

* * *

Lena didn’t  _ always _ hit on Kara.

She only saved it for rare occasions where she knew it would be interpreted as good natured teasing. Of course, she never would classify is as actually hitting on someone, more like… Southern Belle flirting. Sweet and complimentary, but never demanding. But now only offered if Kara herself started it. Lena had thrown the first two, but had responded to the next three by month seven. The funniest thing about Kara attempting to flirt with her, was that she always made sure Winn or Alex were out of earshot. It was  _ adorable _ .

Danvers and Schott had really stayed on top of the work Lena’s house had cut out for them. It helped that the weather was good and they miraculously hadn’t run into any hiccups. Most of the interior of the house had been repaired and updated to follow along the strict guidelines set by Midvale’s Historic District Council. The only other time Lena had jumped through so many legal hoops had been when she had renamed L-Corp and started dissolving certain subsidiaries.

But her home was  _ gorgeous _ .

Deep warm browns of polished wood, carefully plastered walls in a creamy eggshell and a color accent wall of one of her favorite olive green shades, a clever collection of modern and antique furniture, comfortable subtly-pattern rugs of earthy tones, and matching creamy floor length curtains around the wide windows. Lena kept most of the old fixtures, choosing to polish and rewire the ones that could be salvaged, and going out of her way to completely replace the ones that were broken with specially made duplicates. She didn’t  _ have _ to do that, but they were elegant fixtures… and it made Kara happy when she told her she wanted to keep them. So really, Lena was a sucker for bright blue eyes and a pretty smile. Not that she would admit that. Not that she would admit-to anyone other than Sam-that Kara was one of the most interesting and genuine people she had ever met.

Not that she would admit she had a  _ crush _ on her contractor. That she was hiding her last name from.

Oof.

* * *

It was one cool fall day when Lena finally figured out how to approach the whole  _ Luthor _ name.

The work on her home would be wrapped up next month, and then her current contract with Danvers and Schott would be completed. She had already spoken to Kara about finishing the basement, and decided around their other clients and the permits needed for altering the sublevel of a historic home, work would begin in the new year. It would give Lena a few months to truly settle into her new home. She was eager to do so and had finally managed to get the rest of her belongings delivered into her house and the storage pod trucked away so she could  _ finally _ use the rest of her drive way. Kara had helped her carry a couple boxes up to the small spare bedroom she had chosen to transform into a home office, and was currently starting to unpack some of her electronics.

“-and we do game nights on Fridays too! But the pub trivia on Wednesday is fun even if we always lose. We’d love to have you come sometime, I feel like you’d wipe the floor at trivia.”

Kara had been telling her about what she and her sister and Winn and their small group of friends do outside of work. She had slowly been sharing more and more about herself, and Lena couldn’t help but be drawn to her. There was a gentle undercurrent of attraction, but their interactions were genuine and Lena couldn’t imagine her life without Kara in it now. Maybe that’s why she had grown careless and hadn’t realized that Kara had accidentally looked into one of the boxes holding her framed diplomas.

With her  _ real _ full name.

Lena Kieran  _ Luthor _ .

.

.

.

The room was silent for just a beat too long, and Lena looked up to see what the matter was. Icy cold dread flooded her body and the chilly sharp panic of her secret being outed brought her to a screeching halt. Kara knew.

Kara knew she was a Luthor.

For one heartbreaking second, Lena thought she saw Kara’s face twist in pain and she was suddenly terrified that she had just lost her best friend.

Lena slowly straightened up, unable to find the words to speak as she watched Kara stand to her full height. Something settled in her friend’s shoulders, and she faced Lena with a wistful expression. She reached up to her glasses, hesitating for a long painful moment, and then pulled them off her face with a blink. Her posture changed again and Lena realized that she was truly seeing Kara for the first time.

“I’m sorry Kara Zor-El never met Lena Luthor, I feel like they would have been unstoppable.”

Her words barely made it to Lena, but they rang as clear as a bell in her chest.

“ _ Supergirl _ .”

Kara shrugged, a sad smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

“Formerly. I’m just as human as you now.”

Lena struggled to keep her voice even, feeling as if someone had thrown her for a never ending loop. She sucked in a deep breath, pushing down the squeezing feeling in her chest and the old guilt that had haunted her since that fateful day in Metropolis. 

“I thought my brother killed you.”

“He almost did.” Kara swallowed thickly, her eyes flickering to her feet. “I-I’m sorry my cousin killed your brother.”

“ _ He deserved it _ .”

Lena’s waspish retort caught her by surprise. Kara opened and closed her mouth a few times, feeling bolstered by her reaction as she nervously fiddled with her glasses.

“Please don’t let this sound creepy or anything, but I’ve been following you. In the news. Or I was and you just… vanished. You did a lot of good, Miss Luthor.”

“You don’t have to call me that.”

Kara deflated a little at the bitter note in Lena’s voice, one that she had tried to bottle up.

“May I call you Dr. Kieran then?”

Lena was around the desk in a clumsy stumble and grasping onto Kara’s wrists in a heartbeat.

“Please don’t let my name color your opinion of me. Who you’ve been around, who you’ve been working with these past months? That’s  _ me _ . My name is not going to change how I treat you and how I care about you. I-I’ve just been trying… trying to heal. Trying to live my own life out from under my family. That doesn’t make our friendship any less real, and I hope you can forgive me for hiding the truth from you.”

“But I hid myself-”

“ _ For a good reason _ . For your  _ safety _ . I’m not mad at you, Kara. I don’t think I could be.”

Kara just breathed, wide eyed. But she didn’t pull away.

“Just Lena?” She finally whispered, a tiny hopeful look bleeding into scared blue eyes.

“Yeah. Just Lena.”

Kara nodded a little, and then a lot, relief washing through her. Lena felt like she needed to lie down.

“Still want me to come to your game night?”

Kara finally laughed, a little watery, but just as bright as Lena had ever heard.

“Yes. I would love for you too.”

Lena finally relaxed, loosening her hold on Kara’s wrists until her fingers were just resting on her skin. She swallowed down the end of her nerves, and ducked her head to catch Kara’s eye.

“Would you like to stay for dinner, Kara Zor-El?”

Kara took both of her hands in hers with a smile that radiated warmth.

“I would love to.”


	36. What are friends for?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: “what are friends for” is a phrase kara and lena use often. early on in their friendship it’s just a casual remark when bringing the other lunch or talking through a problem together or binging Netflix when one or both had a long day. But of course they fall for each other and then it has more meaning & is charged with tension & says everything they can’t say in words. “what are friends for” while staring at the others mouth or in the crook of the others neck or with fingers in the others hair

It starts as a reassurance.

_ What are friends for? _

Lena forgets to meet Kara for coffee one morning until she slips in with a tall takeout cup from Noonan’s and a single donut for her. She apologized profusely and Kara threw the phrase out, kind and carefree.

“ _ What are friends for _ ?”

Kara had to cancel a dinner at a new bistro they had been wanting to try to meet an unreasonable deadline set by Snapper Carr, and Lena shows up with takeout from their favorite Chinese restaurant and an echo of  _ what are friends for _ ?

From a gentle reassurance it bleeds into a friendly term of affection, almost teasing at times. To Lena cleaning Kara’s bank out at Monopoly, Kara floating up to reach something on a high shelf for Lena, to small work favors of running documents or moving file cabinets.

Kara thinks she’s lost Lena’s friendship when she has to save her out of her uniform, but amidst the destroyed lobby of L-Corp and the emergency lights flashing in the dust filled lobby, Lena grabs her by the shoulders.

“We’ll talk about this later.”

“Y-you aren’t mad?” Kara stammers, her glasses shattered somewhere on the floor.

“I am, but you’re still important to me. Now go, before the police arrive.”

Kara can barely eek out a  _ why _ as Lena starts shoving her towards an emergency exit.

“ _ What are friends for _ , right? Now  _ get out of here- _ ”

It’s rocky after that, but Lena doesn’t cut her off. Kara works hard at regaining her trust bit by bit, giving her space and playing by her rules. For a little while. Eventually Lena learns to meet her in the middle and it’s less rocky but they still tiptoe around each other. One evening when Lena seems to be backsliding into guilt, Kara finally embraces her for the first time since she saved her amidst the cracking stone and flying shrapnel.

“ _ Why _ are you still trying after how I’ve treated you?” She sobs.

Kara just holds her tighter, trying to hold herself together and pressed her lips into the top of Lena’s head.

“ _ What are friends for _ ?”

Life goes on and they learn to heal. The phrase makes it back into their daily routines with a little more weight. It isn’t until Kara is giving Lena a lift home from drinking a little too much alone in her office that she learns what her best friend had been doing behind the scenes to protect her. Erased security footage, lying to government officials, publicly  _ and _ secretly supporting different alien rights groups that L-Corp may or may not have agreed with, it was all laid bare mumbled into the side of her neck in slurred words. When Kara touched down on the balcony of her apartment and elbowed the door open she finally spoke.

“You didn’t have to do all of that for me.”

Lena just curled her arms tighter around her shoulders, her warm lips pressing into the skin of her neck in what Kara thought was a kiss.

“ _ What are friends for _ ?”

Something shifted between them after that. The slow dawning realization that their friendship was blossoming into something  _ more _ hidden behind the carefully spoken words they used as a blanket for affection. Each utterance became more rare now, but spoken in such a way that promised the golden warmth of love. It came with tight embraces with no room between them, linger touches on the backs of hands aching to lace their fingers together. It finally boils over when Kara realizes they’ve been staring at each other’s lips the past couple times they’ve recited it to each other, and she's in Lena’s space.

“Do you want to go on a date with me?”

Lena’s cheeks warm in a pretty blush, finally sliding her fingers through Kara’s and murmurs, “You realize that you’ll have to take me on a lot of dates to make up for lost time?”

  
Kara can barely whisper  _ what are friends for _ , and Lena is kissing her.


	37. Tiktok

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: Hey! If you still take prompts (drawing or writing), can you please do a SC drop the towel/walk out nakey in front of your spouse tiktok challenge?? Cheers✌🏼
> 
> \--
> 
> A little blurb. As a treat. (Thank you, I’m pretty busy but I had a little down time! I hope you're all home and staying safe.)

The camera clicked on.

The screen showed the interior of a home, a curious cross of designer furniture and homey touches. The camera panned through a dim bedroom, mostly aimed at the hardwood and rug but the frame of a bed was recognizable, lit red-gold from a bedside table. The large bay window was thrown open and the gauzy curtains billowed in the gentle breeze, silvery in the moonlight.

The person holding the phone started walking, the sound of bare feet on hardwood matching the rustle of fabric. The camera followed a dim hallway, focused on the beautifully woven rug and a single fair skinned hand pulling the tie of a silk robe loose, her black polish perfect on shorter manicured nails. A set of rings on her fourth finger and a bracelet around her wrist caught the low light. The woman’s fingers were long and slender, the tendons delicate on the back of her hand like piano strings and dotted with a few dark freckles. Once the tie had come undone she flicked the end of the belt away and there was the sound of cloth sliding as she approached an open door. The camera paused and shifted just outside the door, and then the same attractive hand reappeared with the silk robe pinched in her finger tips.

The camera rounded the corner into the brighter-lit room, revealing another woman sitting adjacent to the door at a desk filled with papers. She was on the phone, squinting at her laptop behind trendy tortoise shell glasses. Her broad shoulders were bare and her tank top rode up from her sporty leggings. Her wavy sandy blonde hair was wild as if she had been running a hand through it in frustration.

“ _ Yes _ , Snapper. If you don’t like my source then you can-“

It was award-winning journalist, Kara Danvers. Which  _ meant _ the holder of the phone was-

The silk robe hit the woman in the face.

Kara squawked in surprise, free hand flailing and pulling the robe off of her head after a moment of struggle. When she reemerged her hair was a mess and her glasses were crooked, a confused furrow crinkling in between her brows. Kara looked in the direction of the camera and froze, her mouth hanging wide open. Pleased laughter came from Lena Luthor as Kara started scrambling out of her seat.

“I’ll call you back, my wife made dinner.”

Kara abruptly ended the call and left her phone on her mess of a desk with a clatter, a cheshire grin stretching across her face as her eyes glued themselves to her wife. The camera quickly retreated back into the dim hall with a delighted laugh from Lena. The video was a blur as she raced back down towards the bedroom, the video cutting just as the curve of a pale shoulder and inky black hair snuck into the frame.


	38. Goodnight Moon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask: dk if you're still taking prompts but: Person A has always had nightmares and barely sleeps but after one fateful sleepover because Person B was feeling sad, A is able to sleep peacefully and its only because they start having more (B insists because they can see how much it helps A) sleepovers that A realizes they have a HUGE crush on B and doesn't know how to process
> 
> For Lisa (@gayandmediocre). For always hyping me up and making my writing feel worthwhile.

Lena blinked sleepily and let her head rest on Kara’s, barely paying attention to what was on the tv screen. Her best friend had asked her to come over for a little while, feeling down after a rough week and even rougher memories from a turbulent time in her youth. Trauma she knew about only because of an errant button, but the understanding was there even if they didn’t talk about it. Understanding in the form of Lena carefully slipping the button back through the loop with a gentle smile and a soft  _ It’s alright, I’ve only known you a month _ . The rest, as they say, is history. And the beginning of an unstoppable team of a Super and a Luthor like never before.

The same Super and Luthor in a cocoon of blankets barely watching some trashy reality show with the remains of their comfort meal on the low coffee table. They had ordered in all of their favorites, sparing no want just to splurge. Kara was  _ always _ worth the extra calories.

“Hey Lena?”

She snuggled closer in response, too sleepy to do much else. Her week had been rough too with sleepless nights and night terrors that were worse than usual.

“You don’t have to, but could you stay over? I don’t really want to be alone tonight.”

Her usual bubbly voice was subdued and fragile, betraying the hurt and loneliness that comes with survivor’s guilt. Lena knew the feeling well.

“Ok. But I’ll need to leave early, I’ve’a seven-thirty I can’t miss.” She mumbled.

“Tomorrow’s  _ Saturday _ .”

Lena grumbled in acknowledgement. “Mhmm.”

They sat silently for a beat.

“I can wake you up?” Kara asked, relief already bleeding into her tone.

Lena shook her head, or rather, gently rocked it on top of Kara’s. “I’ll leave about six.”

Kara squirmed against her for a moment, biting back a protest, but she said  _ okay _ and that was that. It was barely past eleven when they called it quits on trying to stay up, the day finally catching up to them. As they were settling into Kara’s bed Lena hoped she would get  _ some _ sleep that night, but just resting next to her best friend would probably be an okay substitute. Kara cuddled into her and she was asleep before she knew it.

* * *

The soft chime of her alarm rang quietly in Kara’s dark bedroom. It pulled Lena up and into a groggy state of awareness, wrapped up safely in a ridiculous amount of blankets. She was  _ cozy _ . And to be quite honest with herself, feeling well rested for the first time in a while. In fact, she didn’t think she had any dreams at all during the night. Lena sighed sleepily and snuggled deeper into the covers, deciding she’d let her phone cut off in a moment so she could doze a couple more minutes.

It was then she realized some of the blankets around her shoulders unwrapped themselves and stretched, the warm touch of skin pressing into her nose as her alarm was silenced. Lena cracked an eye open and came face to face with the smooth column of Kara’s neck. She woke up a little bit more and started piecing together what was what, realizing part of the mess of blankets she was trying to burrow into… was actually her best friend. Kara grumbled something that sounded like  _ five more minutes _ and settled back down, curling her arm back around Lena’s shoulders and squishing her face into the small space between the crown of her head and the pillow they were sharing.

With anyone else Lena most likely would have been embarrassed. Maybe even  _ mortified _ … but she wasn’t. Or, not at the moment, there was always a chance to be embarrassed later. She was comfortably relaxed. And Lena did  _ not _ want to get up. As she laid there for a few more minutes she debated on what she wanted to do. Kara  _ clearly _ didn’t care that she had glommed onto her, being the tactile person she was, and the more Lena thought about it the less it seemed like a big deal. They sat and cuddled on the couch sometimes. How was this any different?

Lena  _ really _ didn’t want to get up.

“Kara?” She finally mumbled into Kara’s shirt collar.

Her friend answered with a sleepy sound into her hair.

“C’you get my phone please?”

Kara sighed and reached again with a soft grunt, stretching and pressing close one more time in a solid frame of warmth. The feeling made Lena feel even cozier and she wanted to smush her face into her. A moment later Kara relaxed again and the arm that had draped over her shoulders curled clumsily in between them, bringing Lena’s phone. She thanked her and took it, squinting blearily at the screen as she unlocked it with a touch of her thumb. Lena was half-way through formulating a message to Jess with a half-cocked excuse to make the meeting a teleconference just so she could sleep a little more when she received a text from her assistant.

_ Holmes has to reschedule, family emergency. Will book him at the earliest convenience, see you Monday Miss Luthor. _

Saved by the bell. Lena blinked blearily for a moment, processing the message, and then sent a quick  _ Thank you, Jess. See you Monday _ . Kara stirred as Lena reluctantly wriggled up and out of the covers for just a moment, stretching and shoving her phone back onto the bedside table.

“Time to go?” Kara asked in a sleep roughened voice.

Lena turned back and started scooting back towards Kara, who didn’t even have an eye open. “No, canceled.”

Kara hummed lowly and finally opened an eye just to see what was going on. “S’rry’s’all over you, y’were dreamin’. Slept better when I was close by.”

“Thanks.” Lena murmured, and then promptly scooched back into Kara’s space, already feeling the pull of sleep again. “This ok?”

Kara hummed again but this time in agreement, and Lena curled back into the space she had woken up in. This time she  _ did _ press the bridge of her nose to Kara’s collarbone, her forehead warm against her neck. It felt  _ really _ nice. Kara curled her arm back around her shoulders again and tucked her chin against the top of Lena’s head.

“N’gh night.”

Lena breathed in deeply through her nose, feeling the soft vibration of Kara’s words against her forehead. She sighed out her own and let herself drift back off.

* * *

They slept in until nine-thirty, which was rather late for Lena. She woke up in a similar position she had fallen back asleep in when her face nearly smushed into Kara’s chest, cocooned in a tangle of blankets and limbs. She had been hot and thirsty but felt completed rested for the first time in a  _ while _ . Lena had stayed for a late pancake breakfast, helping Kara with the cleanup and promising she’d let her know when they could hang out again. Beyond the lazy morning, her day had been normal as she spent most of it in her home office.

But the nightmares returned that evening, and Lena fell back into her sleepless routine. That one night sleeping at Kara’s  _ had _ helped though, so she managed to make it a solid three weeks to their next game night without much incident. As soon as she walked in the door to the full apartment Kara’s brow pulled low in worry and and she pulled her aside in the kitchen.

“Hey, are you okay?”

Lena wrenched the cork out of the wine bottle and poured maybe a little too large of a glass. “Long week, I’m fine.”

Kara crossed her arms and leaned against her kitchen counter with her back to the room. Her glasses were perched up on top of her head, there for when their pizza was delivered.

“You look exhausted. I know you pull late nights at L-Corp, but I don’t want you to work yourself sick.”

Lena shrugged half-heartedly, not wanting to really get into an argument over this particular subject again. “I’ve had a lot to get done.”

Kara pressed her lips together in a firm line. “Do you have anything scheduled for the morning?”

“I have a call at two, but nothing else. I was planning to-”

“Stay over tonight.”

Lena was brought up short by her best friend’s request, immediately glancing around to make sure their other friends hadn’t heard the question that was  _ far _ too easy to take out of context. It didn’t seem like they had and she turned her back to the room, the heat of a blush creeping up her neck.

“Kara, I-“ she paused, and then risked a glance at her friend. Her blue eyes were earnest and true, hoping that Lena would agree with her. Her stomach did a weird little flip.

“...I don’t want to intrude upon you.” She finished weakly.

Kara pursed her lips for a moment and leaned a little closer, her worry still painted plainly upon her face.

“You don’t have to stay. I, um, just noticed you slept really well last time you stayed over. I thought maybe having a… there’s not a good way to really say this,” she laughed softly, a blush coloring her cheeks, “-a  _ bed buddy _ , helped you sleep better.”

Lena half hid her face behind her glass for a long moment, her own blush creeping up to her face. She would be lying if she said the offer wasn’t appealing… or that she hadn’t thought of it. And now she had butterflies swirling in her belly.

“Did you  _ have _ to say it like that?” She mumbled into her wine.

Kara stifled a laugh behind her hand. “A sleepover, then? I could even read you  _ Goodnight Moon _ .”

Lena cut her eyes at Kara, who was still looking at her with such mirth and  _ warmth… _

“ _ Yes, fine _ . I’ll stay.” Lena relented, not even putting up a fight. She was too tired to fight. Maybe she’d even let Kara read her the little board book.

Kara hissed a quiet  _ yes _ and straightened back up, slipping her glasses onto her face just as there was another knock at the door. “I know it’ll help.” She murmured, and slipped past to get their pizza.

The rest of the evening progressed like normal and Lena found herself flagging close to ten, comfortably sandwiched between Kelly and Kara. Alex was also squished onto the couch and Lena felt safe enough to lean a little heavier into Kara under the guise of “running out of room”. At one point Kara rescued her nearly empty wine glass as her hands relaxed and told her quietly that she could go on to bed if she wanted. Lena had replied with a  _ no I’m okay _ and tried to sit up a little straighter. But the past few weeks had finally caught up and the warm, comfortably pliant body of her best friend wasn’t helping things either.

Her body always associated Kara with safety. Now it was also starting to associate her with  _ sleep _ .

She dozed off at some point, and maybe not even for very long, but she woke up to a warm hand on her knee and Kelly bidding her goodnight with a kiss to her temple. She garbled out some sort of protest to keep playing whatever game was still going on, but Kara stopped her with a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“It’s okay, it’s nearly midnight.”

“It’s  _ what _ ?” She could barely keep her eyes open, still half asleep and wanting nothing more than to curl into the solid shoulder behind her.

Alex leaned into her line of vision and dropped her own kiss to the top of her head. “Stop trying to be a robot, Luthor.”

Lena couldn’t quite form her usual snarky comeback to her second favorite Danvers and she got jostled when the sisters hugged. She finally pulled herself up and out of most of her foggy brain as people started filing out of Kara’s apartment with calls of farewell. The heavy wooden door shut with a slam and then a strong pair of arms was helping her to her feet.

“Why don’t you go get ready for bed? I saved the extra tooth brush you used last time and you can borrow some of my clothes. It’s the purple one in the wall cabinet.”

It took her a moment to steady herself, but Lena nodded and Kara reluctantly let her go. “Call if you can’t find something, I’ll be there in a minute.”

As she trudged from the room Kara started zipping around in a blur of motion, straightening up and collecting trash. When she started brushing her teeth with the purple toothbrush, exactly where Kara had said it would be, she heard her loading the dishwasher and cleaning up the kitchen. By the time she had borrowed some of her makeup remover and washed her face the apartment was dark and her friend was tugging the heavy divider curtain shut. She changed into a soft tee and some lightweight sweatpants Kara had laid out on the bed for her, too tired to tease her for the Halloween-themed pun printed on the front from her National City University days. The last thing she remembered after settling down in the fresh sheets was Kara cuddling in close from behind her as she drifted off to sleep, wishing her goodnight.

* * *

Saturday started at about nine with Kara plastered to her back in the middle of the bed.

She was a line of warmth form the steady breath puffing against the back of her neck, all the way down her back to her rear, and snug against the back of her thighs. A toned arm was slung loosely over her side and curling in towards her chest, but blocked by her own arms. Again, she felt well rested for the first time in weeks, and definitely resisting the urge to wake up. Her bladder had a different opinion and she wriggled out of their warm next with a tired groan, leaving a still snoozing Kara behind. Lena returned a few minutes later, feeling better after also having a glass of water, and climbed back up onto the bed. Instead of returning to her space from before she slid in behind Kara and pressed squarely into her, reversing their previous positions.

Kara sighed sleepily and mumbled something, staying put as Lena pressed her nose into the back of her neck and curled an arm over her waist. It wasn’t a familiar position for her, but she found that she actually liked it. It was cozy. Lena breathed in deeply, and slowly released it, sinking deeper into the bed against Kara.

Another hour couldn’t hurt.

* * *

Lena should have known that a second sleepover would have opened the floodgates.

It started as a pattern with their far and few between game nights, and then it narrowed to a rare Friday about every three to four weeks. She loved spending time with Kara, but this whole  _ come sleep over I know you’re tired _ facet was… strange.

Not a  _ bad _ kind of strange, but definitely  _ strange _ .

However.

Lena couldn’t deny that she did enjoy the sleepovers. It meant more time with Kara  _ and _ a good night’s rest. She found it harder and harder to resist Kara’s requests for her to  _ come rest I can see how much it’s helping you _ and before she knew it she was staying over every other Friday.

And then  _ every _ Friday.

She started bringing her own sleep clothes and even started leaving a small collection of toiletries in a small section of shelf in Kara’s bathroom cabinet.

It was the most rested she had been in  _ years _ .

It was also the most intimate she had been with someone since Jack.

It was…

...definitely playing with her emotions.

Emotions she hadn’t expected to involve her  _ best friend _ .

_ Shit _ .

Lena had somehow managed to form an unbelievably strong crush on Kara in the past few months.  _ So _ strong that every interaction now was colored by it. She couldn’t imagine not having Kara in her life before said crush, and now she wouldn’t  _ dare _ entertain the thought. It was twisting her up inside every time she laid down next to her best friend.

She wanted to do more than just sleep.

She wanted to touch her.

Lena wanted to explore her.

She wanted to tell Kara how she felt.

Oh  _ god _ she wanted to  _ tell Kara _ .

That’s how she knew she was in trouble.

* * *

Lena sat on her crush for another two months.

Maybe it would fizzle out?

Or maybe it would bloom into something a bit stronger than a crush.

Maybe it would grow into something deep-seated and overwhelming and heaven help her… she really was in love with Kara now wasn’t she?

Maybe she always had been.

It’s quite possible.

Maybe wasn’t really a  _ maybe _ anymore.

Maybe was now  _ truth _ .

It made her snuggle closer to her best friend as she dreaded the end to something so nice.

Kara noticed her increase in initiation of affection, Lena could tell she had. Her best friend was already so tactile, but now it was like she had a starfish for a friend. Even through the summer months with the AC cranked up and the only sheet barely covering their hips, they had stayed glommed together. It made the both of them happy to have such an easy chance to cuddle, and their embraces grew more casual as the months cooled. Legs tangled more frequently, hands accidentally slipped under shirt hems and curled across chests, lips brushed skin with sleepy mumbles and faces pressed into the crook of necks. It was painfully romantic by the time Halloween snuck up on them.

Lena had stopped trying to hide her longing looks when she caught Kara studying the shape of her lips in September. She started drawing patterns on her back if she woke up before her and would seek out her hand to hold if she wasn’t quite ready to get up yet.

Lena  _ really _ wanted to kiss her.

* * *

It would honestly be silly to wait any longer at this point.

The words hadn’t outright been spoken, but the heavy meaningful looks and stroke of thumbs on exposed skin in tangled cuddly heaps said  _ everything _ .

Lena was pretty sure they had fallen in love somewhere between the sheets.

It was overwhelming.

It was at the forefront of her mind as she drifted back into wakefulness, snuggled securely into Kara’s chest and the circle of her arms. Her toes were cold but her nose was warm, pressed into Kara’s neck. Lena had lost count of how many times she had woken up next to Kara, but each morning felt like a new start. A new day to do something good or constructive, a new day to put her best foot forward.

A new day to fall deeper in love with her best friend.

It was  _ overwhelming _ .

And Lena was tired of dancing around.

She waited a few more minutes to wake to a more lucid state, taking into account of everything around her. Lena catalogued every point of contact with Kara to the tangle of their legs to her arms tucked in between them. Of where her face was cozy against Kara’s neck to the lump of the muscular arm that had slid under the pillow when it would have awkwardly gotten between them. Lena sighed and finally gathered up her courage, her usual apprehension still dulled from sleep. She wiggled up onto an elbow, propping herself up over Kara with her heart in her throat. Lena knew she probably had morning breath, but if she did then so did Kara and that would essentially cancel out, right?

“Kara?”

Lena traced the line of her jaw with the pads of her fingers, gently waking her. Kara stirred with a sigh and twisted in place, pushing her shoulder back and let her hand rest on Lena’s waist. Her blue eyes blinked open, just barely, and a soft smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

“Mhh?”

Before she could second guess herself for the nth time, Lena dipped her head down and brushed her lips against Kara’s in the most polite kiss she could muster. It was barely a kiss, but she did it. It shocked her awake quicker than any cup of coffee and the urge to lean back in with a firmer kiss was just as quick. So she did, kissing Kara a little more firmly as the hand on her waist curled around her and pressed flat to the small of her back to draw her in closer as she kissed her back. Lena did pause after that one lasted a little longer than a chaste kiss, her intentions clear as she started tracing the line of Kara’s jaw again. She leaned up just far enough to look at Kara without going cross-eyed and met her gaze. Lena could feel her face warming with a blush as Kara blinked out of her sleepy stupor, her brows rising in wonder.

“...oh. Good morning.”

“Good morning… Is this okay?”

Kara grinned immediately, all sunshine and warmth. “Hi. Yes. Totally.”

Lena sagged against her in relief, giggling at Kara’s goofy response. She was wrapped up again in strong arms and was rolled onto her back by Kara with a happy squeak, warm lips pressing into hers again in a smiley kiss.

“I was  _ hoping _ .” Kara murmured, sliding the soft skin of her cheek against Lena’s just for the sensation.

Lena kissed the curve of her jaw. “I’m sorry I took so long.”

Kara returned to her mouth with a kiss that was so sweet it nearly brought her to tears.

“No, you were right on time.”


	39. Speaker Phone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> post from murdershegoat on tumblr (Ihknox on ao3): im gonna need someone to write a supercorp coffee shop au about this stat. kara as the barista who falls in love with the ruthless business woman who puts one of her board members on speaker so everybody can hear how dumb he sounds.
> 
> (paired with the infamous jpbrammer tweet: "this woman in starbucks was fighting over the phone and she just put them on speaker so that we could all hear "how dumb you sound"

Kara was on the verge of quitting her position at Noonan’s, worn out and feeling underpaid, when  _ she _ walked in.

Kara didn’t know her name. But from her expensive wardrobe and immaculate presentation, she had to be somebody highbrow. Or someone in corporate business. In fact, she looked wealthy enough to have a whole team of interns making coffee runs for her. It wasn’t the perfume that smelled like it cost six months of her rent, the nameless black card she always paid with, or the fact that she seemed to have a new pair of designer shoes every time she clicked into the shop that drew her attention. Kara thought she was the most gorgeous person she had ever laid eyes on. The strongly-assumed business woman blew her  _ heavy _ crush on CatCo Photographer James Olsen out of the water. Inky black hair, perfectly sculpted brows, piercing intelligent green eyes, and a jaw that could cut glass… Kara was more than a little smitten.

Oh, she tried to hide it. Embarrassing herself with terrible jokes and snorty laughs and the nervous habit to adjust her glasses in nearly every interaction probably didn’t help her case. Kara practically burnt up from the inside every time she happened to be working the register. It was a wonder she didn’t dump the woman’s order on her perfectly tailored outfit out of nerves. She never really spoke to Kara outside of the polite clipped responses to giving her order and paying for it, sometimes only pausing long enough in a phone call to complete those tasks. However she never spoke over Kara in a rude manner, which was a little surprising.

All of that changed one less-than-stellar morning.

The pre-lunch rush was just starting to pick up, she had already endured three-too-many blonde jokes at her expense, another altercation with an entitled woman looking for a free drink, and some jerk clogging the family bathroom toilet-

Kara could hear her arguing into her phone before she even shouldered the door open with a deep scowl. She brought her voice down, quietly continuing to ream the person on the other end of the line a new one as she stepped into the short line. Kara had seen her full range of business polite to cool and calculated, but this was something new. She was  _ fiery _ , and the closer she drew to the counter, the more Kara could pick out the slip of an accent she hadn’t noticed before. It didn’t feel appropriate for her to be  _ more _ attracted to her. But she was.

Finally, it was Kara’s customer’s turn and  _ thankfully _ there wasn’t someone else behind her because she bit out a quiet  _ shut up for a moment _ into the receiver and held her phone away from her ear.

“Eighteen ounce. Fill it with espresso, please.”

Kara gulped down a nervous knee-jerk laugh and keyed in her order, thinking about how this drink would probably launch the angry woman into warp speed. She heard a coworker mutter an  _ oh for fuckssake _ behind her and the espresso machine start. The woman tucked her phone in between her ear and shoulder as she dug into her purse for her card, murmuring a  _ this better be worth my time _ .

Not two seconds after offering Kara her card to swipe, she nearly bellowed a  _ WHAT _ ?

Kara dropped the shiny black card behind the counter in her shock. She bent down and scooped it up, her face burning as she hastily wiped it on her apron-not that it needed it. But it was a  _ fancy _ card from the woman she kinda really liked-

The woman who was jabbing at her phone and holding it up in front of her.

“Go ahead, I’ve put you on speaker. They need to hear you.”

A staticky scoff crackled through the line. “ _ Who? For WHAT? _ ”

The woman rolled her eyes so hard they nearly vanished into her skull. Kara took the moment to admire the way her dark painted lips crooked into a disgusted sneer, showing off the straight line of her bright teeth.

“How completely and  _ utterly _ incompetent you sound.”

“ _ I will NOT be disrespected like this- _ ”

“Oh you won’t? Well then my friend here would be happy to listen. Tell  _ her _ your grand idea.”

Kara blinked in surprise as a slender hand extended the phone towards her, carefully cradling the credit card to her chest in case it decided to make another jump for the tile.

“ _ Where are you, that coffee shop? As if some idiot in there would know what I’m talking about-” _

A sharp spike of heat lanced through Kara’s chest and she found herself speaking up before she could catch herself.

“I’ll have you know I’ve nearly completed my thesis on microaggressions, marginality, and oppression often perpetuated by mainstream medias and how such behaviors in turn are detrimental in different measures towards the LGBT community through differences of race and gender. I’m  _ not _ an idiot.”

The man on the other end of the line paused awkwardly, spluttering in surprise and taken aback by some stranger actually talking back, but Kara could only look at the other woman. The other woman who was looking at her with bright, open curiosity now. She hung up her call without sparing her phone a glance, her head just barely tilting to the side as an impressed grin started to tug at the corner of her mouth.

“Are you really?”

Kara’s face warmed and she shrugged, quickly swiping the credit card and running the transaction. “I, um. I have another two years, but I made some  _ great _ progress the past few months.”

The woman’s eyes squinted in interest. “Masters degree?”

“No, uh-” Kara handed back her card with a growing blush, floored that she was receiving such a positive and intense degree of scrutiny. “-doctorate.”

The woman’s eyes lit up further as she retrieved her card. “ _ Really _ . I would love to hear about your research sometime.”

Kara felt like she was going to pass out.

“Y-you would?”

In response, the woman slipped her card into her bag, and withdrew her hand with a business card. “I would. What’s your name?”

Her name tag was  _ definitely _ pinned to the bib of her apron, but the way she asked didn’t feel patronizing in the slightest.

“Kara Danvers.” She offered.

The woman smiled, a little warmer than the usual polite business smile she used, and held out her card. “Well then, Kara Danvers. I am always interested in the more humane side of business and politics. I’m curious to know how this translates to media.”

Kara took it, and quickly read over it.

Her eyes nearly popped out of her head.

_ Dr. Lena Luthor _

_ L-Corp _

Oh holy  _ shit _ she was talking to one of the richest people on the  _ planet _ . And she wanted to talk to  _ Kara _ about  _ her thesis _ . And now Kara felt woefully unprepared and unworthy and oh  _ no- _

“ _ OH _ . I, um, I would be absolutely  _ honored _ , Miss Luthor. But, like, I  _ totally _ understand if you can’t fit me into your schedule. I know you’re probably insanely busy-”

“Miss Danvers.”

Kara shut her jaw with a click.

Her coworker gently placed the large cup of pure espresso down on the counter for Lena Luthor to reach with a polite  _ thank you, enjoy your drink _ . Lena Luthor reached out and picked it up, still pinning Kara with a curious look.

“I would appreciate your company, Kara.”

Then she bid her goodbye with a sly smile and swept out of Noonan’s in a swirl of espresso and expensive perfume.

Kara emailed her on her lunch break.


End file.
